Gravity
by Skatora
Summary: Seventeen months after the end of the Winter War, Orihime still has of reoccurring nightmares about Ulquiorra. But are they just dreams, or something more? Could Ulquiorra be connected to her more than she realizes? Ulqui/Hime; slight history change.
1. Chapter 1

AN: This takes place between the Fullbring Arc and the current Arc, but I've changed some history, which will be revealed in greater detail throughout the story. Most specifically, I've changed Orihime's reaction towards Ulquiorra's death, which, in turn, changed her subsequent reactions in other situations. It's my first fic, so please let me know if there are any glaring errors. Thanks!

* * *

The sky was washed a bubbling gray as storm clouds hung heavy overhead. A drizzling sheet of rain fell from the overcast skies, soaking everything with silver drops. Pedestrians briskly fled under building overhangs for shelter, with newspapers or briefcases over their heads in a vain attempt to shield themselves from the rain. Cars zoomed by, hurling water out of puddles.

It was quieter in one of the many small parks that populated Karakura Town. The rain had chased away almost all the visitors, and the playground was deserted. Quiet. Still. Rainwater was dripping from the grated levels of the jungle-gym, running in rivulets down the swirly-slide.

The swing-set was empty save for one occupant, who slowly _creaked_ her swing back and forth with the toe of her sneakers. Long, auburn tresses escaped from under her pink, bunny-eared hoodie. She held on limply to the silver chains of her swing; the tips of her dainty fingers were pink with the chill of the weather. Her shoulders were slightly hunched over, and she was looking blankly at the woodchips under her shoes. Rainwater dripped rhythmically from the rim of her hood. Her gray eyes were swollen and red, and either tears or rain streaked down her cheeks.

Exhaling deeply, her breath puffed up in the cold air. Her blank expression started to crumble; her eyes glazed over with excess tears, and her bottom lip trembled with barely suppressed sobs.

Her breath hitched, and she stopped swinging, dropping her head in obvious sorrow. Crying softly, her ragged sobs were the only interruption to the constant backdrop of the rain.

Hugging herself, she began to take deliberate deep breaths to control her crying. It worked for all of two seconds before she relapsed into harder sobbing. She shrank into herself, folding over until her head hovered over her knees; her auburn hair falling like a curtain over her face.

"Woman," a deep voice resounded from above her.

She froze; her gray eyes wide in a mixture of recognition and shock. Slowly lifting her head, she looked up; she gazed upon the familiar pale skin that she had come to know, with those strikingly green eyes and tear-marks running down his apathetic face.

"Ul-Ulquorria…" She breathed, mesmerized.

* * *

_Six weeks earlier…_

Orihime stood in her tattered and dirtied Arrancar dress in the gray, ruined world of Hueco Mundo, and tears stained her face. She remembered this scene well: standing atop of the broken gray Dome, uselessly watching as her dark captor started to fade to dust, scattering into a thousand pieces into that gray void of Hell.

Ulquiorra.

He had slightly tilted his head her direction, and his expression… His bright green eyes were locked onto hers. His expression was soft, tired, and lonely all at the same time. He opened his mouth to speak. Orihime knew what he was going to say.

"Are you afraid of me, woman?"

She shifted, her hand clutching the fabric of her tattered dress, as if she could hold her aching heart. Why did she have to relive this? Why couldn't he just leave her alone?

"No…" Orihime started, and with her vision blurring with tears, she finished her painfully rehearsed line, "I'm not afraid."

"I see," Ulquiorra looked away. He seemed content with her answer; satisfied; pleased. Why? Why did he care what she thought? Why did he keep haunting her with his death night after night? She knew she was dreaming because Ichigo and Ishida weren't there. It was just her and Ulquiorra, alone on the Dome.

"Ulquiorra," Orihime called softly, and instantly his intense green eyes locked onto her own. "Why are you doing this to me?" There was anguish in her voice that she couldn't hide.

"You asked me this before," He said, but his deep voice was too soft, too gentle, "Did you forget already?"

"No…" Tears started to roll down her face, "But I still don't understand."

They looked away from each other, unable to provide the answers they both desperately craved. Orihime knew that Ulquiorra would fade away much slower in her dreams. She knew that he would stand there, forever turning to ash until she forced herself to wake up from this reoccurring nightmare. Every night she would dream of Ulquiorra. Every night she would have to relive this. The tears wouldn't stop flowing down her cheeks. She hated this.

"Aren't you in pain?" She asked, staring at her feet.

There was a long pause, and then his deep voice answered, "No."

Hiccupping on a sob, Orihime rubbed the tears from her eyes, and managed to smile, "Good. I'm glad."

"Woman," Ulquiorra's deep voice commanded her attention; she looked up at his outreached arm, "It's time to wake up."

Orihime stared at his hand, reaching for her, always reaching for her. Her gray eyes narrowed. "I don't want to. I'm tired. I'm so, _so_ tired."

"You don't have a choice. You never did." Ulquiorra's voice had a hint of anger behind his words, and his arm was still waiting for her. Always waiting, always outstretched; his green eyes expectant.

"You'll die," Orihime choked, "I'm so tired of watching you die every night!"

"I already faded to ash, woman." He said, his expression blank, "Why would it make any difference to you now?"

Stunned by his stinging words, Orihime drew back, "It made a difference to me back then," she said stubbornly, "I didn't want you to die." And then she hastily added, "…No one did. Not even Ichigo!"

Ulquiorra's still reaching hand twitched in anger, "Ichigo simply wanted his ill-conceived notion of a 'fair fight.' My existence mattered little to him. How many times as he mentioned me since that day? It seems like the only person truly negatively affected by my passing was _you_."

"What are you trying to say?" Orihime huffed, on the defensive now.

"I matter to you."

Orihime's gray eyes widened, and she couldn't breathe for a moment; her heart hammering in her chest. She locked gazes with Ulquiorra, and his green eyes were sincere, but they also were just as cold and factual as they always have been. She knew that he had seen right through her. His eyes, just as he claimed, missed nothing. But another part of her didn't want him to know how much power he had over her. Just how much he came to matter to her over these past seventeen months.

Sighing with defeat, she started forward, reaching out to him. Time resumed its normal course, and Ulquiorra suddenly was disappearing much too quickly. She knew that she would never be able to touch him; that no matter how fast she moved; no matter how far she reached, by the time she got to him, by the time her finger curled to move around his, she would grasp nothing but ash.

Tears flowed freely as she watched, again, as Ulquiorra slipped through her fingers and faded to ash, scattering into that gray void of Hell. His last moments were watching her with his softly lonely expression.

Orihime's tired eyes fluttered open. The early, gray sunlight was just beginning to snake its way through her closed shutters, causing a striped pattern of light and shadow over her bedroom floor. She groaned softly, and sighed. Her pillow was still wet with her tears, and her white sheets were tangled around her body. She had somehow kicked off her fluffy white comforter during the night, along with half of her stuffed animals that she always had on her bed. She warily glanced her alarm clock on her bed-side table. The hands read five-thirty in the morning. She groaned again, this time in frustration.

"It wasn't time to wake up. I could've slept for another hour, Ulquiorra." She told the stillness of her bedroom, her sleepy voice laced with annoyance.

With great effort, she lurched herself to the upright position, blearily rubbing her eyes from sleep and tears. She yawned and stretched, the spaghetti strap of her silky white nightie gently falling from her slender shoulders. Absentmindedly, she pulled the strap back in place as she kicked her legs free from her tangled sheets and sat up. She blankly looked around her bedroom, her eyes squinting in the low light.

"_I matter to you."_

A soft blush graced her cheeks as she remembered last night's conversation with Ulquiorra. The rest of her dream was hazy in her memory, but she distinctly recalled his deep voice sincerely informing her of what was then completely obscure, but now was completely obvious.

Of course he mattered to her! She half smiled to herself. He had a power over her, and now, seventeen months after the end of the War, he still held her prisoner. She briefly wondered if she'd ever be free.

Softly, she grabbed her nearest stuffed animal, a fuzzy brown teddy bear that she named Luffy, and hugged him close to her aching heart. Orihime was starting to become so weary. She buried her face in Luffy and groaned at the prospect of facing another day of school. She was just _so_ tired… She just couldn't seem to catch a break. Sleep never came easy to her, which caused her friends to worry, which also caused school and work to drag on forever. Hollows were coming with more frequency, and to top it all off, she had to study for college entrance exams. Life, she begrudgingly realized, was much easier being Aizen's prisoner… And at least Ulquiorra was around then, too.

"Wait…?" Orihime looked up, her brows furrowing in confusion. She shook her head, "No…" she started, unsure; Ulquiorra wasn't a blessing. He was curse; it was because of _him_ Orihime wasn't getting the sleep she so desperately craved; that she relived a nightmare every night she closed her eyes.

She sighed deeply, "I should get ready for school…"

* * *

Orihime found herself back on the Dome, clutching her torn Arrancar dress. She gazed out with tear-filled eyes as Ulquorria reached out to her. His green orbs pierced hers; he seemed more annoyed than usual, "George Washington, Woman."

She blinked, "What?"

He started to fade, everything was going black, and she could barely make out his voice as he started, "You shouldn't sleep in cla—"

Suddenly, Orihime snapped her head up. Bright daylight from her classroom's windows poured onto her, she blinked rapidly to adjust her eyes to the sudden light. She heard her fellow classmates' snickers before she noticed her history teacher standing directly over her.

"I'm glad you could join us again, Miss Inoue." Her teacher cattily said, which caused more laughter from around the room, "Maybe now you can answer my question?" His tone indicated that he knew she had been sleeping, and had no idea what question he had asked her. The giggles of her classmates confirmed his condescending look.

"Um…" Orihime started, "George Washington…?"

An awed silence took the room. "T-that's correct; the first president of the United States was George Washington…" Her teacher said, a bit of disappointment in his voice, as he started to move up the aisles of desks to the front of the room. "Now let's go back to Japanese history…"

Orihime let out a shaky sigh and tired to avoid the lingering stares of her classmates by posing a faux fascination with a random page of her textbook.

_What… What was that?_ Orihime was suddenly nervous. Beads of sweat formed on her brow. She never really fell asleep in class before, and certainly she had never had Ulquorria… Like, _pay attention_ to her life like that. Ulquiorra had only spoken of things that happened when he was alive—this was the first time he ever mentioned anything outside of his direct experiences.

She was shaking. She ran her figures through her hair and forced herself to breathe normally. To calm down. This was so stupid. It didn't mean anything, Orihime convinced herself. She had recurring nightmares about that Arrancar—and in dreams anything can happen… Right? It was just a dream. _A dream!_ When did she get into her mind that Ulquiorra was actually _there_, actually talking with her? She needed to get her head on straight before things got too out of hand.

Ulquiorra was dead. She just had nightmares about him. That's all…

The bell suddenly rang, which caused Orihime to jump in her seat in surprise. She had paid no attention in class whatsoever, so her mind was reeling in confusion; class had ended already? How long had she been asleep? What was the homework assignment? She would have to get it from one of her classmates later, she supposed.

Gathering her books, she neatly placed her belongings in her bag and trotted out of the classroom with the rest of her peers. It was lunch hour, and she wanted to quickly get her shady spot under an oak tree in the school yard before one of her fellow classmates took it.

She walked passed a window, and instantly noticed her friend's unruly black hair in the school's courtyard below, speaking with the also instantly recognizable spiky orange 'do of Ichigo. She sighed. For a moment she thought that it was funny that, after all that she and Ichigo had gone through, he was still closer friends to Tatsuki than he was to her. The two of them seemed to be in a serious discussion, and from her bird's eye view of the courtyard, she could only see Tatsuki's expressions. She seemed worried, gesturing to Ichigo, and then to the school.

Orihime wondered what they were talking about. Maybe there was a bomb in the school! And only Tatsuki and Ichigo knew about it, and they were discussing evacuation plans for their classmates without arousing the suspicions of the bomber? That would certainly be exciting, though highly improbable.

Sliding the tall glass window open, Orihime waved out to her friends, "Tatsuki! Ichigo!" she called, hoping to get their attention. They instantly turned to look at her, and Tatsuki waved back. Smiling softly, Orihime turned back into the school and trotted to the stairs, satisfied she had, at least, sort of spoke to them today.

* * *

"Speak of the devil…" Tatsuki muttered as she saw Orihime waving at them through the top-story window. Ichigo turned around and smiled at the redhead calling to them, and Tatsuki waved back to her bubbly friend. She waited until she saw Orihime safely retreat back into the school before continuing her conversation.

"Anyway, I'm worried about her. She hasn't been the same since she's came back from…" She left her sentence end there, and Ichigo's brown eyes narrowed as she continued, "She's changing, little by little, into someone I don't know anymore."

"Everyone changes as they get older; maybe it's just coincidence?" Ichigo reasoned.

"You know what I mean!" Tatsuki snapped, "Even her spiritual pressure is different. It's darker… I don't know. Don't tell me you haven't felt it."

Ichigo's brows furrowed and he gazed at the blue sky in concentration. "I'll ask Uryuu about her." He said, "But if it means anything to you, Orihime was thoroughly examined by Shinigami after the Winter War, and if anything… bad… happened to her while in Hueco Mundo, they would have found it and fixed it.

"I'm not so sure…" Tatsuki insisted, "She's so solemn when she thinks no one else is looking. And she keeps talking about people I don't even know, and when I ask her about it, she tells me she doesn't know what I'm talking about. And she's told me time and again she's not sleeping well. She was my friend long before she got wrapped up into your spiritual world, which I don't know enough about, which is why I need your help."

Ichigo ran his hand through his hair nervously, "Okay, I'll see what I can do,"

"Thanks." Tatsuki said genuinely.

* * *

The late afternoon sun was starting to be covered by a giant anvil storm front, rolling into the city. Thunder rumbled distantly between the lazy buzzing of cicadas and the cheerful banter of her schoolmates. Orihime was pleased to be sitting alone in the shade of one of her campus's large oak trees; warily watching the sky grow dark as she took a bite of her peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Her mind was a million miles away.

"You know…" a familiar voice started behind her, causing Orihime to jump, "I kinda miss the odd creations you used to bring for lunch."

Orihime twirled around to find her dark-haired friend smiling down at her, "Tatsuki!" She tiredly rejoiced, "I thought you had extra karate practice today?"

Tatsuki sat down next to her, "Naw," She started, waving her hand, "They called it off today. So I thought I could hang out with you. We haven't really spent that much time together since…" Tatsuki let her sentence trail off when she saw Orihime unconsciously flinch and drop her gaze, "But yeah, if you're free we should totally go shopping or something. I haven't done anything really girly in a while!" She smiled, and Orihime felt a pang of guilt wash over her; she started to absentmindedly pick at the grass in front of her.

"Yeah… sorry, I kinda already have plans today…" Orihime started, but thought, _Which is a lie. _

She started to make a pile of ripped grass, "I'm really behind on studying," _Lie_, "…And I promised Chad I'd get him some more leftover bread from the bakery, so…" _Also a lie_. "Maybe some other time?" She smiled at her friend, but all she could think was, _I just… don't feel like hanging out today…_

Tatsuki stared at Orihime with an unreadable expression. "Well, that only leaves me one choice…" the dark-haired girl exhaled dramatically, before wickedly smiling at her, "I'll just have to kidnap you! You've been way too stressed out for your own good; don't think I haven't noticed." She suddenly stood and reached her hand out, "Let's go!"

Orihime was flabbergasted. "Wait… _Now_?" She pointed to the school just as the bell tolled, signaling that lunch was over and exclaimed, "We can't just skip school!"

Tatsuki rolled her eyes and grabbed Orihime's arm, lurching her friend upright, "You don't seem to have a problem ditching when a Hollow rolls into town." She reasoned. "Besides, I'll buy. You need to lighten up a bit. I hear you're starting to fall asleep in class now."

"Ugh!" Orihime groaned, but a smile was spreading across her face, "Rumors! They're all rumors, I swear!"

The two gathered their lunches and started for their shoe lockers, "Yeah, but is it also a rumor that you've become really quiet and lost your appetite?" Tatsuki looked at her seriously, "I know we haven't been that close lately, but I'm still your best friend and I know you—and I know that there's something bugging you. You don't have to tell me anything if you don't want to, but you should know by now that I'll always be here to help you, right?"

Touched by her friend's concern, Orihime smiled, "I know," she started, "Thanks…"

The girls managed to escape from school without too much notice. They hit up a few clothing boutiques and tried to come up with the most horrendous outfit combinations they could think of. Orihime's stomach was in agony, she was laughing so much. In the last shop they were in, storekeeper got mad at them, and Tatsuki bought Orihime a simple bangle bracelet to placate the man before they made their getaway. Little did Tatsuki know, but the bangle she bought looked very much like the bracelet Ulquiorra had given her, to make her invisible. Memories came flooding back to her as she slipped on the silver band.

"Oh, no…" Tatsuki groaned as they left the boutique, shaking Orihime out her reverie, "Look at the sky. I think it's going to rain soon."

The sky was dark and angry; bubbling clouds hung heavy and low. Thunder grumbled loudly overhead. Orihime reached her palm to the sky, and felt a cold, wet drop fall on her fingertip. "I think it's already starting to," she said, warily eyeing the turbulent clouds. "Well, I should probably get going. I have to go to work soon, anyway."

Tatsuki smiled, "This was a lot of fun. We need to hang out more often." She playfully punched the redhead's shoulder, "No more excuses, okay?"

"Yeah," Orihime sheepishly started, "I'm sorry I've been… kinda out of it lately. There are a lot of things on my mind, but you're right: I needed to hang out and clear my head! I feel much better already."

The expression on Tatsuki's face was a mix of concern and agitation, "Can I ask a blunt question? Are you still stressing over what happened while you were… Away?"

Orihime's gray eyes widened before she dropped her head, staring at her loafers; nervously twirling her sliver bangle around her wrist. "Maybe a little," She admitted, then absentmindedly tucked a strand of auburn hair behind her ear. "Honestly, I don't know if I'll ever really get over what happened in Hueco Mundo. Chalk it up to post traumatic stress disorder or something, but yeah…" She smiled, despite herself, "I'm fine… Really. It'll just take some time, but I promise I'm the same ole me."

Tatsuki cocked a brow, unconvinced, "If you say so. But I still worry sometimes."

Lightning flashed nearby, and the cascading roll of thunder tolled loudly above them. A few more drops of rain _pinged_ around them as it hit the ground. "I think it's about to come down for real," Tatsuki smiled and hugged her friend, sincere and tight. "Stay strong, Orihime," she told her before she released her.

"Thanks," She said, blushing a little, "And stay dry!" Orihime smiled and pointed to the sky in emphasis as more rain twinkled around them, "We'll have to run for cover!"

Tatsuki was already starting to walk down the street, "Ha! A karate master like me can dodge rain!" she smiled.

"Bye! And thanks for the bangle!" Orihime waved and started to walk in the opposite direction her friend was going. She was still feeling elated; today turned out to be a good day. She only had a small, three-hour shift at the bakery before she would be free to go home. She playfully spun her bangle around her wrist. Finally, she had spoken about Hueco Mundo. Granted, it was totally sugar-coated, but it still felt wonderful to have at least _someone_ know that her experiences there still taunted her. She didn't feel as lonely anymore; she had a good friend.

The rain began to fall consistently; the dark drops that randomly dotted the concrete sidewalk were emerging into one sleek, wet surface. Orihime grimaced and started to trot down the sidewalk, trying to quickly get to the sheltered bus stop that was at the end of this street. Another clap of thunder boomed right above her, making her hair stand on end. _That was close! _She thought. The heavy clouds were making for an early evening, and the street lamps were already starting to turn on. By the time she reached the covered bus stop, her hair, shoulders, and shoes were thoroughly soaked. She plucked at her wet hair in disgust, _Great…_ There was no way to salvage it; she'd just have to pull it into a ponytail when she got to work.

A huge, dense spiritual reiatsu roared at her senses just as lightning flashed across her face. The overwhelming pressure was almost easy to identify: a Gillian Menos.

Orihime whirled around, and could see just the top of the massive Hollow behind the buildings; its white mask and telltale long, pointed nose was aimlessly looking over the city. It roared, terrible and shrieking, and rammed into the structure in front of it. The building exploded in a cloud of dust and debris.

What? Why was this thing here? Orihime was horrified. She hadn't even sensed a Kumon opening to allow the Menos into the Human World. She watched as the Gillian teetered onward in its path of destruction; destroying everything in its path. Citizens screamed in terror, and rushed away from their invisible terrorist. Women were crying, and the shouts of the injured rose above the din of the downpour. Almost as quickly as she felt the Menos, she could feel Ichigo's strong reiatsu surge in the distance, with Rukia not far behind him, but they were too far away to help right immediately. Chad and Ishida were also across the city. Orihime was the only one close enough to help right away.

She ran out of the shelter of the covered bus stop, pushing through the throng of frightened people running from the giant Hollow's devastation. Rainwater soaked her to the bone, as thunder clattered overhead. Even with all of her training, she knew that she couldn't take on a Gillian Menos on her own. But she could help slow it at least; and protect her fellows until the cavalry arrived to vanquish the monster.

She skidded around the slick corner and into the middle of the now-abandoned road, and right at the end of the street the Menos stood, huge and dark against the churning clouds. Its beady, black eyes seemed to focus on Orihime, and it roared. She touched her hairpins on her school uniform's lapel, "Tsubaki! She summoned, "Koten Zanshun, I reject!"

The firey spirit surged from her hairpins, "'Bout time I got some action!" He chastised the girl. Orihime ignored his comment and pointed to the Menos, "We have to keep it occupied until Ichigo and the others come! First strike is critical, and—"

"Oi, I know more about fighting than you, woman! Let me do my thing." The spirit took off towards the Hollow in spear of light. Orihime knew that even though Tsubaki looked like a pin fighting against a haystack, he had some punch in him that would, at the very least, irritate the Hollow to keep his attention on her, and not the horrified city around it.

Tsubaki cut a clean, paper-thin slash right through the base of the giant Menos' black body. It screamed in surprised agony; rainwater shaking from it as it shuddered in pain.

"Tsubaki! Again!" Orihime commanded, and her fairy circled around the monster in a line of light, aiming for the exact same spot as before. But before the spirit closed the distance the second time, the Menos opened its toothy mouth, drawing forth a sphere of power crackling in black energy. A Cero, aimed right at her.

Orihime's eyes widened with a primal fear, "Baigon, Hinagiku, Lily! Santen Kesshun, I reject!" Her fairies flew from her hairpins to form the golden shield just at the blast reached her. The large Cero collided with her shield with such force, it pushed Orihime, and she fell onto the soaked blacktop; her head bounced against the asphalt, hard, and she literally saw stars flash across her vision. The triangular defense shattered just as the Hollow's attack finished. Orihime, still dazed from her fall, glanced upward, and saw that the Hollow had moved, and was towering directly over her. It opened its mouth to form another Cero.

Time seemed to slow then. She saw everything in super slow-motion, and she could swear she heard a familiar voice calling out to her. Who was it? She was so dizzy…

The Menos' Cero was nearly finished forming, and the familiar voice was getting louder, or closer to her. She couldn't figure which; her head hurt so badly. What did he want?

Everything was still going so slowly; she saw the Cero discharge from the Menos' mouth, hurtling towards her, but her head was still so fuzzy, it was hard enough just for her to hold it up to look up as her doom was fired at her. Her heart was hammering in her ears; it was making it so hard to hear what he was saying. That familiar voice… He was screaming at her, wasn't he? Somehow she knew that that was so unlike him. He was always so apathetic; what was he trying to get her to do?

A strange sensation filled her for a tiny moment; for a singular instance in time. She was filled with a reiatsu not her own; it was dark and overpowering, yet it seemed to spring from somewhere deep within her own being. She _knew_ this reiatsu, but for the life of her, she couldn't place where she knew it; it had been such a long time since she felt anything like it.

The Cero descended upon her, and acting on instinct, she raised her hand to block it. The foreign reiatsu flooded into her hand, and as simple as pushing away a balloon, she caught the massive, blistering Cero in her one dainty hand and bounced it away from her. The attack exploded against the Menos' black body, causing a part of the Hollow to dissolve away. It recoiled from Orihime in a screech of pain.

Almost as instantly as it filled her, the foreign reiatsu was suddenly gone. She immediately felt completely drained; the throbbing from her head overpowered her senses, and she collapsed back onto the soaking wet road. She was distantly aware of Tatsuki calling out to her. She tried to stay awake, but it was so hard. She was so, _so_ tried. She closed her eyes just as she felt Ichigo's and Rukia's reiatsu arriving next to her.

* * *

End Chapter 1!

A bit of a cliffhanger, but not too bad. I plan to update again in about two weeks. Thanks for reading! Review if you like it... or hate it, haha!


	2. Chapter 2

AN: I love your reviews! They are so precious to me! Seriously... They make me unbelievably happy! Thanks for letting me know I was spelling "Karakura Town" and "Las Noches" wrong . I'm going to fix that!

And I'm sorry I was few days late for my update. I'm going to try to be a bit better with that. :/

In this chapter, Orihime is concussed half the time, so she doesn't make much sense. Also, I'm going to put in a teeny-tiny-itty-bitty ounce of IshidaHime in here, but don't freak out; it's mainly for the lolz.

Anyway, Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter Two

Orihime recognized that she was back on the Dome; her ruined Arrancar dress billowing around her face. Was she… Lying down? Her gray eyes blinked, bemused. This was different. She slowly pushed herself to the upright position; somehow knew she was too dizzy to stand, so she tucked in her knees close to her chest as she looked across the Dome. As she expected, her dark captor was staring at her with his green eyes, already fading away to ash.

"Are you afraid of me, woman?" His voice was harder than usual, more guarded.

"No," She sighed, remarkably weary, "I'm not afraid."

Ulquiorra slowly turned his head away from her and coldly stated, "I see."

"What's wrong?" Orihime's brow furrowed in confusion; her mind felt sloppy.

Intense green eyes glanced in her direction, "You are so _fragile_." His voice was a mix of despondence and irritation, "Why do you humans insist on tackling enemies so obviously stronger than you are? Is your life so insignificant you'll try to throw it away at every possible opportunity?"

_—rihi—_

What on earth was he talking about? Orihime hadn't the faintest idea. She blinked, trying to sort out his outburst, but for some reason, it was really hard to think. "Are you… Talking about Ichigo? He fought you to free me."

Ulquiorra looked at her like she was dumber than a brick; his condescending expression was insulting, "Woman, I'm referring to _your_ behavior."

_—ihim—_

"Mine?" She rubbed her temple, "You're not making any sense…"

"Says the outmatched girl who ran headlong against a Gillian Menos." Only Ulquiorra's eyes smirked, undoubtedly he thought he had clarified any and all arguments against his logic. But Orihime could only stare at him, her mouth agape.

"H-how do you know about that?" Her gray eyes widened; unconsciously, she hugged her knees tighter to her chest.

_—rihim—_

"I told you before; my eyes see everything." He replied to her, his expression blank.

"_How_?" Her face crumbled. "How can you _still_ see everything?"

Ulquiorra simply looked at her, his face expressionless, but Orihime caught the slight narrowing of his apathetic eyes; he knew something, but he wouldn't tell her!

_—rihime!—_

"Gosh, what _is_ that? Don't you hear something?" Orihime asked, exasperated, "I swear someone's calling my name."

Ulquiorra fixed his green eyes on her, and there was an intensity surrounding him that engulfed her and made her feel small. He stretched out his pale arm, "Will you answer them, or reach out to me?"

"What?" Orihime was shivering. She was suddenly soaked, and was wearing her school uniform. When did this happen? What was going on?

_—Orihime!—_

"What will you do, woman?" Ulquiorra was relentlessly staring at her, his demeanor dark and threatening, while his outstretched arm was tenderly waiting for her.

_—Orihime!—_

She furrowed her brows; her mind was reeling. There seemed to be something vitally important happening. She sensed if she didn't make a decision, right now, something would be lost forever. But she didn't have all the answers; why did she have to choose _now_? What was she even choosing? This didn't make any sense! She pushed her soaking wet hair out of her face in agitation. What was the right thing to do?

"What will you do?"

_—Orihime!—_

There seemed to be multiple people calling her name. They sounded like they were a million miles away, but the fear and worry were plainly heard in their voices. Orihime's face crumbled and she looked her feet; she felt like crying. What was going on?

"Woman, look at me."

She couldn't look at him; she couldn't! He was just too intense; his presence alone was messing with her mind. She couldn't think straight when she had to gaze into his green eyes; he made everything so much harder. She was convinced he had all the answers she wanted, but was too cryptic and stubborn to tell her. He was so irritating!

"…Orihime," Ulquiorra's deep voice purred her name like silk. She instantly snapped her head up, locking her gray eyes with his green ones. Hearing her name on his lips caused something to churn within her body; she felt hyper-aware of all the emotions rushing through her system: fear, elation, excitement, nervousness… But then she noticed something she hadn't a second earlier: Ulquiorra was fading to ash much more quickly than usual. His wings were all but gone, and his long black hair was starting to go next; he was in the final stages of disappearing.

"Oh, my God!" Orihime's heart nearly jumped out of her chest with sudden, terrible anxiety. Ever since she started sharing her dreams with Ulquiorra, she nearly always had reached out to him before he got to this stage of deterioration. She had merely seconds left before he was entirely gone.

She leapt to her feet, pushing towards him with all of her strength, "Ulquiorra!" She screamed, frantic, as she scrambled nearer to him, reaching out her hand to try to grab what was left of his fading one. She was so close—_so close!_—to him now, a part of her wondered if she would be able to actually touch him this time. Her dainty fingers moved to curl around his strong ones.

And that's when something slammed into her, knocking her backwards.

_—Orihime!—_ Some of the voices seemed shocked, the others, outraged.

She struggled to move against the heavy weight that was holding her on her back. She felt intense pressure to get to Ulquiorra. She needed to get to Ulquiorra _Right. Now_. She twisted and strained, but the weight was just so much stronger than her; she couldn't get up.

"No… Get off of me!" Orihime struggled on the asphalt, shredding her elbows and knees as the rain poured down on her. She stole a pathetic glance up just in time to see the last of Ulquiorra's ash fading into the gray, rainy city.

"_Nooo!_ Please, no…!" Orihime cried out, but immediately stopped struggling. She suddenly felt more exhausted than she knew was possible. Her breath hitched, and she sniffed, already feeling the tears start to overflow from her eyes. But wait…City? Karakura Town? Or Las Noches? Right now, it made sense that she was in both. She sighed, utterly defeated.

_"Orihime! Please, wake up!"_

Was that Tatsuki's voice? What was she doing here? She tried to move again, but everything was still so heavy, and her head was throbbing…

_"Orihime! Talk to us!"_

That was definitely Rukia. So both Tatsuki and Rukia were here? Where was 'here,' anyway? What were they doing? What had _she_ been doing? For the life of her, she couldn't remember. Everything was coming up blank. She was cold and wet, and raindrops were irritatingly falling onto her face. She groaned.

"I think it's safe to move her." Rukia was softly saying to someone, "We should get her to Urahara's shop."

"I think that's a good idea," a masculine voice agreed. Who was that? Orihime's brow wrinkled in concentration; was that Ichigo? When did he get here?

"I want to come with you!" Tatsuki complained as Orihime felt a strong pair of hands shuffle underneath her shoulders and knees, and she felt herself being lifted from the wet street. The movement almost immediately caused intense nausea to rock through Orihime, and her head felt like it was about to crack in two, it hurt so much. "Oh, _God…_" She groaned, slightly curling into herself, and resting her head against Ichigo's chest. Her brain was distantly aware, that, in another time, being carried in Ichigo's arms would have been an ultimate dream come true. But now all she wanted was _not_ to throw up on the guy. In fact, she was actually a bit annoyed at Ichigo for being so rough with her. Couldn't he at least walk a _little_ smoother? She was doing all that she could to combat her nausea, and his jostling wasn't helping! Sighing, she closed her eyes and nestled into Ichigo's warmth; it helped some.

When Orihime opened her eyes again, she could tell a long time had passed. She sat up slowly; her head and stomach were still bothering her, but at least her mind was clearer. It helped that the room was dim; it didn't hurt her head so much. Letting her eyes adjust to the low light, she found herself lying on a soft, white futon on a hardwood floor in a small, Japanese-style room with boxes and baubles stacked around her. A slated window on the far wall let in the sounds of the rain, and a few distant rolls of thunder, but the outside was dark and black. Bright, yellow light from the next room sneaked its way through the crack underneath the sliding shoji door, and she could distantly hear voices talking amongst each other.

She lightly stretched, pulling her muscles from stiffness, and discovered she had been changed from her school uniform to a simple yukata robe, with bandages wrapping around her palms, knees, and elbows. Touching her throbbing temple, she found that her head had also been tended to; it had been gauzed and bandaged all the way around. She sighed deeply; this was obviously Urahara's shop, and what he did always had a hidden motive, or was part of some grander plan. If Orihime was here, then something big was happening. Rocking herself to her knees, she started awkwardly crawling towards the shoji door, trying to spy on the conversation in the next room.

"…We've already been over this before; the Menos must've hit her when she was distracted. There's no way her shield would've broken so easily." Orihime heard Ichigo say. He sounded annoyed, and she could imagine him pacing back and forth along the length of the room he was in.

"But we scoured the area," she heard Rukia say, exasperated, "There was no other Hollow! What could have distracted her?"

"My, aren't we heated this evening?" the lackadaisical chastisement of the owner of Urahara Shop quieted the room. Even without seeing him, Orihime could imagine the former Shinigami's shaded eyes alight with fascination, despite the situation, and waving a fan over his mouth, "Perhaps we're all overestimating Miss Orihime's abilities? I've heard that her shield will break when confronted with a powerful head-on attack; it just lasts long enough to guard against the brunt of it." There seemed to be a few mutters of agreement, Orihime noticed with a bit of wounded pride.

"And I sensed Miss Orihime's reiatsu flare up just as I felt a Cero being fired." The former Shinigami continued matter-of-factly, "I think we can safely agree with Tatsuki's assessment; Orihime shielded against the Cero, and when it broke, she fell and hit her head."

Was _that _what they were auguring about? Orihime blinked with chagrin. How she hit her head? Granted, she couldn't remember any of this, but still… It seemed to be a 'back-burner' type of worry. Maybe she already missed the conversation about _how_ the Gillian Menos got into Karakura Town undetected in the first place; she had been asleep for awhile, she reasoned, for surely her friends would've made the origins of how the Hollow appeared more important that the origins of her injury.

"I think you're all ignoring the elephant in the room," she heard Tatsuki say, the agitation clear in her voice, "When I felt that Hollow, I came running back to help Orihime. And when I turned the corner, she was already hurt and lying on the ground. And then I saw her _catch _that Cero in _one hand_ like it was nothing. And that's right when we all felt that dark reiatsu."

The room was silent, and Orihime could feel her friends' questioning auras stab into Tatsuki, "It's not a coincidence!" Tatsuki reasoned, "That dark reiatsu must somehow be connected to Orihime. Like… Ichigo's Hollow mask, or…" She could imagine Tatsuki bristling under their inquiring stares, "I mean, when we tried to touch her to flip her onto her back, she flipped out and screamed, 'Ulquiorra.' He's an Arrancar, right? I think that huge reiatsu we felt was his. Orihime doesn't scare that easily; she went against that giant Hollow on her own! Yet this guy totally freaked her out to the point where she slipped up. They _have_ to be connected somehow. "

Orihime's eyes widened and her breath caught in her throat. Had she really caught a Cero? Could she even do that? Maybe she had an ability that only manifests itself when she was in real danger. But more importantly… She called out Ulquiorra's name? She _sleep-talked_? She could feel the embarrassment rush through her, hot and shameful, along with a different emotion; she couldn't quite place what it was… Fear? Worry? Anxiety? Orihime unconsciously bit her lip. Ulquiorra had been her secret for all these months; he was _her_ problem. _Her_ nightmare. His only presence was in _her_ head. Yet here were her friends, talking about him all of the sudden! Her heart was hammering in her chest. She didn't want them to find out about Ulquiorra!

"It can't be Ulquiorra," Ichigo said solemnly, and Orihime hoped the others would listen to him, "He was the Arrancar who kidnapped Orihime and brought her to Aizen." His voice faltered, "And I killed him with my own hands."

Orihime flinched behind the shoji door, remembering the horrific battle between the two men that encompassed her world.

"Well, maybe he did something to her when she was first kidnapped!" Tatsuki continued stubbornly, "We all know she has been acting differently ever since she got back, and you once told me that she only went with the Arrancar after she got caught by them in the Dangai; she would willingly do whatever those Arrancar told her after that!"

She heard Ichigo shuffle towards Tatsuki, "She was coerced!" He shouted, obviously angry, "She only did what they said because she thought it would save us!"

"Whoa, Ichigo…" Rukia started, trying to calm him.

"No!" Tatsuki shouted right back, "There's something more going on here. Maybe not Ulquiorra, but something else! Why can't you people sense it? There's something else going on!"

"Then why don't we ask her?" Urahara smoothly interjected, completely derailing the teens' argument. "She's awake right now, aren't you, Orihime?"

She froze, gray eyes wide with the sudden realization she was caught. Not only had she been caught eavesdropping, but she was caught between a rock and a hard place. She did _not_ want to talk about Ulquiorra to them, yet she didn't want to lie to her friends…

The shoji screen was unexpectedly pulled open with a bright flooding of light that caused Orihime to be momentarily blinded. She squinted and looked up to see the owner of the shop gazing down upon her, his striped hat shading his eyes, "Won't you join us?" He asked her, smooth as silk.

Glancing around him, Orihime could see that Rukia, Ichigo and Tatsuki were all gathered around a kotatsu table in the next room, gazing curiously at her. Tatsuki was the first to move, "Orihime! Are you alright?" She ran towards her friend, and Urahara moved out of the doorway to let the girls reunite. Tatsuki kneeled on the floor next to Orihime, and hugged her fiercely, "God, I was so worried! How are you feeling? They said you have a concussion!"

"A concussion?" Orihime repeated, somewhat shocked. She lightly touched the bandage that wrapped around her head, "What happened to me?"

Tatsuki stared at her with questioning eyes, "What… happened…? That's what we wanted to ask you!"

Rukia had walked over to Tatsuki and tapped the spiky-haired girl on the shoulder, "Let's get Orihime off the cold floor."

"Would you like some tea?" Urahara offered.

"Um…" Orihime was confused by the bombardment of attention and questions, "I just woke up?"

Tatsuki and Rukia glanced at each other with an expression Orihime couldn't read, "Here," Tatsuki stood and offered Orihime her hand. She took hold of it tentatively, her gray eyes still worry-filled, and supported herself to the upright position. It concerned her that she was still shaky and stiff on her feet. She must've really hurt herself, but she really couldn't remember how…

The girls lead Orihime through the room towards Ichigo at the kotatsu table. They made Orihime sit on the futon surrounding the table, and Urahara summoned Ururu to fetch a fresh brew of herbal tea for Orihime to sip. The liquid was warm and soothing, but Orihime was anything but relaxed; her friends had been staring her expectantly across the table the entire time. She shifted uncomfortably under their eager gazes, and dropped her attention to her ceramic cup; absentmindedly she ran her forefinger around the lip. What did they want her to tell them?

"So," Ichigo started, breaking the awkward silence, "Are you feeling a little better, Inoue? Chad and Ishida were here a little awhile ago. Ishida left, but Chad went to tell your manager that you weren't coming into the bakery today, so…"

"They were here, too? And Chad did that for me?" Orihime was touched, "I'll have to thank him later, I guess, but yeah, I feel a little better," She started, still playing with her cup, "I'm not as nauseous anymore, so that's good. Though my head still hurts."

"I'd be surprised if you were still nauseous," Rukia chuckled darkly, "You threw up all over Ichigo."

"No!" Orihime gasped, snapping her head towards her long-time crush, her face flushing crimson, "I didn't…. Did I?"

"It's okay; as soon as I went back into my body the mess didn't matter." Ichigo tried to comfort her, but it was clear it had irrevocably scarred him for life.

"I don't even remember; I'm really sorry!"

"It's alright," Ichigo's brown eyes captured hers, "But what do you remember?"

She blinked and stared back at her drink, "I remember… um… I was shopping with Tatsuki… And then the Menos attacked. I called Tsubaki to fight, and…" She rubbed her head with the effort of recall, "I think… I think it was attacking me… But I don't remember anything after that. I remember a few bits and pieces, but I kinda remember them like a dream, it doesn't really make much sense.".

Rukia seemed disappointed, "You really don't remember anything after that?"

"No…" Orihime sighed, dropping her shoulders, "Why? Did I do something?"

"Nothing bad," Rukia comforted, "We're just trying to find out what happened here. There are a lot of things that didn't add up, and since you were the first on the scene, you probably could've filled in the gaps we have in our information."

"Like… how the Menos got into Karakura Town?" Orihime leaned forward, unconsciously getting closer; she really wanted to know this answer.

"Exactly," Rukia sounded pleased, "And there was the possibility of another, more powerful, Hollow nearby… We were really hoping you could tell us if you saw another one, or was it just the one Menos?"

Orihime's mind immediately went to Ulquiorra, but… He was gone. There was no way he could have been involved with any of this. She started to work through the events in her mind again and again; she remembered vaguely the Menos firing a Cero at her…

"Gosh, I really don't remember anything after that," Orihime mumbled, her brows furrowed, "But did you find out how the Menos opened a Kumon without us noticing?"

Ichigo shook his head, "No, but we think someone helped it through using either enhanced speed or a different, more subtle gate."

"Like a Garganta? Isn't Soul Society monitoring Hueco Mundo now?" She asked Rukia, "Shouldn't you know if something was going on there?"

"No, Hueco Mundo is the realm of the Hollows, and as far as I know, Soul Society has no real influence there." The petite Shinigami answered, "But, of course, we made some friends last time we were there, and I'm sure they'd make pretty good informants if something big was going on."

"That's true…" Orihime started.

Ichigo suddenly stood up, causing Orihime to jump a little, he was scratching his head with irritation, "Something's bugging me about all this; I'm going to look around again." He started down the hallway, and Rukia jumped up to follow him.

"Oi," She called, "You need to learn some better manners!" She turned to face Orihime and smiled, "I'm glad you're feeling better. Don't worry, we'll have this all figured out soon." The Shinigami waved slightly in goodbye before running down the hallway after the orange-haired Substitute.

Orihime smiled and watched them go, suddenly feeling like the room was much too quiet. Urahara, Tatsuki, and herself all sat around the table awkwardly, before the shop's owner got up to dismiss himself, "I think Chad and Uryuu are coming," he said as he started to leave the room, "Perhaps one of them could escort you two ladies home? It is getting pretty late."

Tatsuki looked at Orihime, "You think you could walk home?"

She waved off that idea, "I really don't want to. Maybe I could take the bus instead?"

"Maybe," Tatsuki answered, standing. "Let's find that Ururu girl to see if your clothes are done. We were washing them for you."

"Thanks," Orihime replied tiredly, before hauling herself upright and following her friend out of the room.

* * *

It was dark and rainy outside Urahara Shop. Soggy, muddy puddles plagued the cobblestone pathway, and rainwater was running in rivulets off the store's gabled roof. The occasional flash of lightning illuminated the churning skies. Ichigo and Rukia, both in their Shinigami forms, were talking with Chad, who was carrying a plastic grocery bag in one hand.

"…She says she doesn't remember anything," Ichigo was telling Chad, the frustration clear in his voice, "Or she doesn't _want_ to tell us anything."

"Hm," The big man considered.

"Tatsuki was saying that Orihime may still be connected to the Arrancar." Ichigo looked down at the sidewalk, watching as the pounding rain made a million little splashes, "I don't want her to be right, but I fought Grimmjow and Ulquiorra, and they both told me that rescuing Orihime was useless because 'she was already one of them.'" He scoffed, kicking a pebble with his sandal, "I didn't want to believe them. I always thought that Orihime had been kidnapped, and would be fine once she got home." He looked at Chad, the rain soaking through his hair, "That's not the case, is it?"

"I have noticed Orihime has been… darker since she got home," Chad agreed, "But not by much."

"Maybe I'll talk to Renji or my brother," Rukia chimed in, "Perhaps they'll know something about this?"

"Well, maybe not Renji," Ichigo joked, which caused Rukia to playfully punch him in the arm.

Headlights, bright and blinding, turned the corner and faced the Shop, causing the three friends to glance with squinted eyes as a smooth, silver sedan rolled closer to them. The car slowed to a stop and parked in the front of the Shop, and the well-tuned purr of the engine was cut-off.

A slim-built man stepped out of the sleek vehicle, his visage was obscured into a silhouette by the bright headlights that had been left on. He popped open a black umbrella to shield himself from the downpour, and started to walk towards the weary group.

Ichigo's eyes grew as wide as saucers when the man became discernible as he drew near, "Ishida?!" Ichigo called out, shocked, "I didn't know you could drive!"

The Quincy, still in his school uniform, adjusted his glasses, pride oozing out of him, "Well, unlike _some_ people, I actually make an effort to improve my human life, as well as my supernatural skills."

Ichigo ignored his insult, "What are you doing back here? I thought you went home?"

"Obviously, I went to go borrow my dad's car." Uryuu jabbed a thumb towards the silver sedan, lean and menacing, even parked. "I came to pick up Inoue."

"That's so sweet of you, Ishida!" Rukia smiled.

Ichigo titled his head to one side, "_Why_?"

Rukia scoffed at Ichigo as Uryuu questioned him, "Inoue has a concussion. Do you want her to walk home? In _this_?" He gestured around him at the pouring rain. He shook his head in disappointment before looking back at the Shinigami, "Where are you going, anyway?"

Answering for him, Rukia explained, "Orihime's awake, but doesn't remember much, so we're going to be looking around again."

"I see," Uryuu started, "So we're back to square one?"

"Not entirely," Chad's deep voice interjected, "There's a theory that the Arrancar might've subjected Orihime to something, which explains the dark reiatsu that occasionally manifests around her."

Everyone was still and uncomfortably quiet in the aftermath of the plain way Chad explained the situation.

"I hope you find something," Uryuu told Ichigo solemnly, "I really hope you find something." He started walking past them, when Chad called out, "Ishida," the Quincy stopped and looked the dark man, "Could you give this to Orihime for me?" He handed the plastic grocery bag to Uryuu, and then he shoved his hands in his pockets and turned around, lumbering off quietly into the wet night. Ichigo and Rukia exchanged a quick farewell with him, before leaping off along the rooftops. Uryuu watched them go under the safety of his umbrella for a moment, then dug into the plastic bag; he pulled out a tube of wasabi paste. A soft smile spread across his face. Placing the wasabi back in the bag, he started for the door of Urahara's shop.

* * *

Orihime had been asleep most of the ride home, but now it was truly quiet and peaceful. It was just her and Uryuu in his dad's shiny car; the sound of the rain was soothing her fried nerves, the driving motion was relaxing, and the rhythmic thumping of the windshield wipers caused enough noise to break up the silence between her and her driver.

She had been incredibly grateful for Uryuu's heroic timing; she had just changed back into her freshly washed and mended school uniform, and was thanking sweet Ururu for all her help when he had slid the front door open. She was very thankful he had gotten a car for her; she didn't want to wait for the bus in the rain. Tatsuki had pleaded to come with them, so she could spend the night with Orihime to make sure she was okay, but Orihime was tired of company. Uryuu must have noticed, because he intervened on her behalf and convinced her friend that Orihime would be all right, and even took Tatsuki home first, and he never attempted to make conversation the entire way to her apartment.

Orihime's gray eyes fluttered open when she felt the car roll to a stop. Uryuu cut the engine, and the placid sound of the rain hummed over the car. He gently placed a hand on her shoulder, "We're here," he announced softly.

Orihime blinked, dazedly glancing at the familiar shape of her apartment complex. She daintily yawned before turning towards her friend, "Thanks, Ishida," she started, her voice muted, "I owe you big."

"And Chad, too." Uryuu turned around and fished a plastic grocery sack from behind his seat, "He wanted me to give this to you." He held out the bag until she took it.

"What's this?" She asked as she reached inside, pulling out a tube, "Wasabi paste? _Aww_, you guys…" She cooed, looking longingly at her favorite cooking ingredient, "You're too sweet to me."

Uryuu adjusted his glasses, "Hardly…" he started, then faltered and looked at the steering wheel; Orihime had a hard time seeing his face through his thick bangs, "We've missed you in the handicrafts club. You should come by sometime. This month is dedicated to making plushies; we're making dolphins next."

"Dolphins?" Orihime chirped, instantly intrigued, "That's so cute! I've missed it too, I'll definitely come by." She smiled and noticed Uryuu's light blush through the curtain of his hair.

"Oi… Did you make this month plushie month just to entice me to come back?" Orihime started with fake offence ringing through her voice, "I know that look," she started, pointing at him, "This was all part of your plan, wasn't it?"

Sighing, Uryuu held up his hands in defeat, "You caught me. But really, the club was starting to lose members; you're like, the club mascot, and we need you to attract people."

"Ah, you're just using me, then?" The smile could be heard in Orihime's voice.

Uryuu laughed, "My pride as both a Quincy and a man says I _never_ 'use' women; I simply capitalize on their feminine charms to my advantage." He nonchalantly shrugged.

"You're evil!" Orihime accused while barely containing her laughter, "Oh, I don't want to laugh…" She winced and held her head with her hands, "My brain is still rattled; it hurts to laugh!"

Uryuu sobered quickly, "C'mon…. Let's get you inside."

He reached behind him again and grabbed his umbrella off the backseat, and got out of the car; the cold draft from the door caused Orihime to shiver. Before she could even gather her things, Uryuu had walked around the car and had opened her door for her, holding the umbrella above her to shield her from the cold rain.

"How chivalrous of you," Orihime cattily complimented as she got of the sedan, and Uryuu shut the door behind her. They walked close together under the umbrella's protection in a comfortable silence until they got to her apartment's covered entryway. Uryuu shut his umbrella, shaking off the excess water, as Orihime dug into her pocket and fished out her keys. She opened the door; her apartment was dim and quiet inside.

"Hey, Inoue," Uryuu started as she crossed the threshold of her home, "You should probably just rest tomorrow; don't worry about school."

"Okay," she agreed softly.

"And if your headaches get any worse, or aren't getting better at all, or if your vision gets bad, you should seek medical help immediately."

"Good to know. Thanks Dr. Ishida." She playfully smiled, and started to retreat further into her apartment.

"If you have any other questions, you should call or text me."

"I'll do that, thanks again, Ishida, for _everything_. Good night." She started to slowly shut her front door.

"Inoue—!" He called out, and she stopped to look at him; he was awkwardly holding his umbrella, and had a very vulnerable expression on his face, "We've been through enough, you can call me 'Uryuu' now." She couldn't help but notice the slight blush dusting his cheeks.

"So I'm finally moving up in your world?" She teased him, smiling softly, "Then you may also call me 'Orihime.'"

"Good night… Orihime," Uryuu smiled and then started to walk towards his car.

"'Night Uryuu!" She retreated inside and closed and locked the door behind her.

It was dark, still, and quiet inside her apartment. She dropped all of her bags in the entryway around her, and stood motionless, lightly resting her sore forehead against the back of her front door. She had so much to think about, she couldn't think of anything. Where should she even begin? She had been so out of touch with her friends lately, and then they all suddenly came flocking to her side the moment they thought something was 'off' about her. She groaned aloud when she thought of her friends' conversation about her possible connection with Arrancar. She didn't want them to be think something was wrong with her! She was fine! And then there was Tatsuki, who was being a little too protective lately. And Uryuu who suddenly became even closer with her. Strange. All of them were acting so differently lately. Maybe she _had_ done something really embarrassing, but just couldn't remember? Oh, gosh… what had she done? Would anyone tell her?

"Ugh, what I am going to do?" She whispered to no one; squeezing her eyes shut.

She sighed. "One thing at a time."

Orihime flicked on her lights and took off her shoes before heading straight to her medical cabinet in her bathroom. She fished out a generic white and red bottle of acetaminophen, and shook out the largest single dose allowed; she swallowed the pills without even drinking water. She needed pain relief, fast.

Padding on socked feet into her small kitchen, Orihime dug through her cupboards to find a shelve of saltine crackers. She started munching on a few of them as she plopped onto her couch, thoroughly spent.

She replayed the day's events in her mind over and over again, but she just couldn't seem to remember anything after she saw the Menos start to attack. How had she blocked that Cero? Gosh... Head injuries sucked.

Wait… Couldn't she just _heal _herself? Why hadn't anyone thought of that before! Why hadn't _she_? Well, she was the one with the head injury, of course; the others had no excuse.

She cupped her hand to her temple and declared, "Soten Kisshun, I reject." A welcoming light and warmth flooded around her head. Almost immediately, the pain started to dissipate; her knees and elbows were healing, too. Within moments, her memory started to come into focus. Orihime's eyes widened as her rejection of her injuries became complete; memories flashed across her vision in rapid fire: stopping the Cero, dreaming of Ulquiorra, reaching out to him…

"Oh, no…!" She whispered with a sudden fear. _Ulquiorra!_ She hadn't made it in time. Had she chosen correctly? What if she never sees him again? She bit her lip with anxiety. She didn't want that; she...

She…

She hugged herself; the horrific realization was finally settling in.

"Oh, God…" Ulquiorra wasn't just a dream. He had saved her today. He was still around. Somehow… still… here… "How…?" How was this possible? She was shaking. Ulquiorra was still somehow alive; somehow connected to her. Her heart was hammering inside her chest. His reiastu had been coursing through her earlier today. She glanced at her hand like it was a foreign object. How? …How was this happening? "Oh, God…" She covered her face with her hands.

Tatsuki couldn't have been more right: Ulquiorra _was_ connected to her.

There were too many questions: How, when, why…? And not enough answers. With a shaky hand, Orihime reached into her pocket and pulled out her cell phone and flipped it open. She quickly navigated through the menus and started a new text to Ishida.

"Uryuu," She typed, "What color is my Spirit Ribbon?" She knew Uryuu could see them, and he wouldn't give her some sugar-coated answer. Normal souls have a white colored Spirit Ribbon. Shinigami have red ones. If she was normal, hers would be white, right? It was the last test she could think of to prove nothing was wrong with her.

She stared at the message until her phone's screen almost went to sleep, then, before she could change her mind, she quickly hit the "Send" button.

She waited for what it seemed to be an eternity, curled up on her couch, her cell phone in her hand. The _tic-tock_ of the clock on her wall was screaming out the seconds as they crawled by. She nervously was gnawing on her thumbnail, waiting for a response to her message.

Finally, her phone buzzed and chirped, signaling a new text message. Orihime sat up straight as she flipped open her phone and went to the message inbox.

It was from Uryuu! She opened the unread message with trembling fingers. It was short and very clear: "It was gray." He had replied.

Gray. Not white.

Not normal.

Her eyes glazed over with tears as she rapidly replied to the text, "Don't tell anyone." She typed, begging, "Please…" She hit "Send."

Uryuu's response came quicker this time, "Wasn't planning on it. We need to meet up and talk."

Orihime sighed with relief, clutching her phone to her chest; she said a silent prayer of thanks to whatever God would listen. "I know. Need time to sort out a few things."

"Don't wait too long."

Orihime shut her phone. Yes, she needed time to sort out things… Namely one thing: Ulquiorra. He had answers. She _knew _he had answers. He had to. Because she now knew that he _was _actually there; he wasn't just a dream—although dreaming seemed to be the only means of communication between them at the moment. And she was going to get her answers right now.

Orihime nearly pranced to her bedroom and jumped under her fluffy white comforter. She snuggled into a comfortable position before closing her eyes. "I'm going to dream of Ulquiorra," she whispered, "And I'm going to remember to ask him about being connected."

"I'm going to dream of Ulquiorra…" She repeated, over and over again, until she finally faded away into sleep.

* * *

End Chapter 2!

There was actually a little bit more I wanted to write, but I liked where this ended, and this chapter is about 1000 words longer than I wanted, anyway.

Please review, and follow! You have NO idea how happy they make me! I'm actually considering playing a little game (because I'm a review-whore, haha): In the next chapter, I'm going to put in an "Easter Egg" somewhere in here. It'll be a line of a song. If you notice it, you'll let me know in the comments! Doesn't that sound fun? I'll think of some way of rewarding the winner, or something. We'll see...

Remember, this will start NEXT chapter! And I plan to update that in about a week!

Thanks for reading!


	3. Chapter 3

AN: Some good news and bad news: Good news: I've got a table in the Artist's Alley at my local anime convention! (Anyone going to Anime Banzai in Salt Lake City (ish), Utah? Look for Neo-Creations! 8D ) The Bad news: I've been spending all my waking hours getting ready for it (it's at the end of this month) so I've had no time left for writing my fanfiction. I won't go on hiatus, but my chapters will be really short. :/

Anyway: LET'S PLAY A GAME! I've "hidden" some song lyrics in here. If you recognize them, let me know in your reviews! (Also, let me know if you like this, or think it's distracting, haha):

Ready...? BEGIN!

* * *

Chapter 3

A cold, bitter wind blew through the darkened sky, whistling as it howled over the ice. The landscape was a jagged symphony of huge, frozen icicles and icy stalagmites that gathered around the only structure for miles; an enormous xieshan style palace, seemingly carved from the ice around it. Two giant, curved icicle cones reached towards each other in an intimating archway in front of the harsh palace, and a lonely figure in a white military coat that draped at the shoulders walked under them, briskly heading towards the tall staircase leading to the oversized portico, a wicked smile was on his long face.

The man pushed down his white cap to nearly touching his round glasses as he climbed the top of the frozen stairs, his square bangs framing one side of his face, and leisurely strolled through the massive colonnade towards the palace's colossal main doors. He saluted the door guards, dressed similarly in white, as they struggled to open the massive and ornate palace gates for him. The doors were opened just enough to let him enter.

The interior of the palace was just as stark and harsh as the exterior. The great hall was colossal, with towering white walls that obscured the ceiling in darkness. The floor was perfectly smooth and tiled, and the whole space was dim and dark. The only light that illuminated the vast hall came from a high row of windows that ran along the soaring walls. Even though the man was walking quickly, it still took him awhile to march to the other side of the great hall, where a deceivingly simple stone throne stood proud against the wall.

The throne was occupied by a tall, dark man with a full beard and long, black hair. His beady eyes narrowed as the man in the white uniform kneeled deeply before him and addressed, "Your majesty, Captain Quilge Opie, reporting for duty."

The dark king tapped his fingers on his throne's armrest, "Quilge Opie," he started, his voice echoing throughout the vast hall, "I have an assignment for you."

Quilge Opie rose to attention, his smile unceasing, as his king continued, "Like we discussed before, we need to control Hueco Mundo. I want _you_ to go here and capture whoever professes to be in charge. Bring them to me."

"As you command, your majesty," Quilge Opie accepted.

"Also," the king continued, "While you're there, hunt down Arrancar stupid enough to have guts. Recruit them to work with us. We need pawns, distractions, and a lot of them."

The king stroked his beard, "Take whoever you may need to help you organize the Hollows."

"Yes, sir!"

"And Opie?" The black king leaned forward, a grin spreading from ear to ear, "Kill all the Hollows you don't use."

Quilge Opie smiled wickedly back as he bowed again, "With pleasure, my king."

"Good. Be as swift as possible. We do not have any time to waste."

Nodding, Quilge Opie kneeled with respect before rising to attention and turning on his heel, starting on his trek through the great hall towards the large, ornate front doors again. He had a swing in his step, even though he could feel the gaze of his leader burning into his back as he left. Assigned to kill Hollows in their own realm? Opie couldn't think of anything more fulfilling.

* * *

Uryuu was the first to arrive in the handicraft clubroom. It was small; during school hours it was used as a study hall. Three windows occupied most of the length of the exterior wall, and they let it the warm, late afternoon sun, which caused long shadows to follow Uryuu as he set down his box of craft supplies on one of the desks. The desks themselves were large and wide, and two chairs were assigned to each of them. Uryuu slid out a seat and started to take out and reorganize the contents of his box.

He looked up to a slight shuffling sound at the door, and saw Orihime stumbling into the handicrafts' clubroom; her usually luscious hair was dim and held no curl, her eyes had faint circles under them, and she seemed generally disheveled and clumsy and she pulled out the hard classroom chair next to a surprised Uryuu and slumped her head against the desk in front of them. She groaned.

"You know…" Uryuu started snottily, moving his box of craft supplies away from the whimpering girl, "You shouldn't be here if you really didn't want to come."

"It's not that," Orihime sat up and ran her figures through her hair in agitation, "I'm really, _really_ tired. I couldn't sleep _at all_ last night."

"I did tell you to take it easy, didn't I? You should go home."

"No," Orihime whispered, clutching the hem of her collar, her gray eyes staring at the desk as her emotions came dangerously close to the surface, "I-I don't want to be alone right now, is all…"

Uryuu's brows slightly furrowed, and he tentatively started to reach out to her, then pulled his hand quickly away, making a controlled fist, "Will you be okay?"

"Yeah…" She looked up at him and smiled, and instantly the room seemed brighter, "Just frustrating dreams; nothing serious."

"Dreams?" Uryuu quirked, "I thought you said you couldn't sleep?"

"_Ugh_," Orihime groaned again, and placed her head back onto the desk, "It's a long story…"

Uyruu looked at the uncomfortable girl for a moment, he opened his mouth to speak, but just then two other club members entered the room, "Inoue?!" One girl started, which caused the weary subject to look up, "You're back! That's fantastic! We've missed you!"

The other club members surrounded Orihime and bombarded her with questions. Uryuu saw Orihime effortlessly adorn a spunky mask of friendliness and happiness. Only her slightly weary physical appearance gave any hint something was wrong. When she was asked if she wasn't feeling well, Orihime gave a radiant smile and laughed about staying up late to study for her quiz in Spanish. And everyone laughed with her, totally believing that everything was right and well in her world.

Uryuu was taken aback at how easily she could deceive people into thinking she was perfectly fine. He stared at her as she greeted each new arrival with genuine cheerfulness; smiling, joking, laughing. How could she do that, he wondered, when just moments ago she could have been crying? Did she also wear a happy mask when talking with himself, Chad and Ichigo, even if she should've been in tears otherwise?

Suddenly, Orihime turned from the club members and her bright gray eyes captured his blue ones, her hair fell over her slender shoulders, a feminine blush dusted her cheeks and she was smiling, "Are we getting started soon, Uryuu? I'm _so_ excited for the dolphins!"

Uryuu blinked, momentarily taken aback by her beauty. Sure, he always knew she was pretty, but for some reason, in that moment, his brain couldn't process any words.

"_Ehhh?"_ One of the club members started, aghast, "Since when did you two get onto a first-name basis?"

"Are you two dating now?"

"Is that why you came back, Orihime? To be closer to Ishida?"

Orihime flushed crimson. She held up both of her hands and literally was waving that idea away, "No! We're just really good friends!"

The other club members were entirely unconvinced, but Uryuu's brain was finally able to find something to say, "C'mon guys! We don't want to scare her off! Let's just get to work. Did everyone bring their material?"

His fellow club members consented and they found their seats. Uryuu took a moment to explain the model and handed out the pattern. Only when they finally got busy with their work, and started their own conversations, did Uryuu sit back next to Orihime. She was awkwardly taking notes.

"I brought extra material, if you want to use it," Uryuu suggested to her as he started to pull out his own pieces.

"_Oh_, could I?" Orihime clasped her hands together with suppressed excitement, "I totally dropped the ball and didn't think to bring anything to sew!"

"It's fine; I figured as much." Uryuu dug through his box and pulled out a Ziploc bag of pre-cut material with matching thread.

"Thank you _so_ much Uryuu! You've been doing so many nice things for me lately…" Orihime smiled brightly and opened the bag and began to organize the pieces. She seemed to be suggesting something of his behavior with her compliment, but Uryuu couldn't figure out what she was alluding to.

"It's nothing," he replied, threading his needle, "And it's nothing you wouldn't do for me."

They fell into a comfortable silence, occasionally responding to questions or conversations from their fellow club members, as their dolphins began to take shape. Uryuu finished his creation first, and the club cooed over his dolphin's prefect construction. It sort of surprised him that Orihime finished shortly after him, and she had a club member take a cute picture of her hugging her dolphin with her phone's camera. Uryuu started to help a struggling member as Orihime joined into a conversation of which superhero was better, Batman or Superman? She boldly declared Batman was the best choice.

"He's rich, powerful, and way hot," She reasoned with the other girls, "Not to mention he's sort of a villain, sometimes; he's dark. Superman is just way too boring being so… so _good_ and prefect. I like my heroes to be slightly dangerous."

"Well, maybe you'll find a Batman to dance with at the School Festival?"

Orihime seemed confused, so the other girl continued, "You didn't hear? One of the Senior classes is thinking about doing a costume ball for the School Festival! I think it'll be a lot of fun! They were even thinking about making it a girls' choice dance!"

"It's 'cause boys nowadays are too chicken to ask out anyone anymore," came another member's disgruntled remark.

"Who would you ask out, Inoue?" The first girl asked the already blushing redhead.

"Um…" She started, "I don't know. Probably just a friend."

"Like…?" The girls pressed for information.

"Oh, I don't know…" Orihime nervously pushed a lock of hair behind her ear, "Hey, Uryuu?" She called out to him, "If I asked you to a dance, would you say 'yes'?"

"I would be murdered if I said 'no.'" He deadpanned to her.

Orihime turned to the girls, "There. That's settled. Who would you ask out?"

As the girls continued their banter, Uryuu found it hard to concentrate helping the struggling member. Did that mean Orihime found Uryuu to be a 'bad boy'? Was that a good thing?

As the meeting finally came to a close, and Uryuu saw the last of his fellow club-mates leave the room, he started to gather his things, and he noticed Orihime's head was buried in her folded arms on her desk, her dolphin plushie sticking out from under the crook of her elbow. He leaned over to look at her, and saw she was breathing evenly, and her eyes were closed. She had a peaceful and contented look on her face.

Uryuu smiled; she was finally sleeping. He took off his jacket and carefully, as not to disturb her, draped it over her shoulders.

* * *

"Are you afraid of me, woman?" Ulquiorra's voice was hard and flat.

Orihime found herself on top of the Dome, her ragged Arrancar dress blowing in the chilled breeze. She looked over at Ulquiorra, already fading to ash, and blinked with surprise.

His bright green eyes were narrowed and drawn. His mouth a thin, tight line. Ulquiorra's reiatsu, although a fraction of what he could've mustered, was still an uncomfortable pressure that threatened to suffocate her. His stance, even though he was missing parts of his arm and leg, was still stiff and intimidating. He was angry.

But Orihime could be angry right back. She placed her hands on her hips, "I'm not afraid, so why have you been avoiding me?" She started, "You _knew_ I wanted to talk to you, and yet every time I fell asleep and started to dream of you, I would suddenly wake up! It's not a coincidence; I know you were doing it!"

"Don't be ridiculous," Ulquiorra's deep voice was coated with resentment, "I have no reason to avoid _you_."

"Then why…?" Orihime's anger crumbled and she could feel the emotion bubble to the surface, tears were welling up in her eyes, "Why won't you talk to me?"

"You seem to be quite content with that _Quincy_ giving you your information." Ulquiorra spat, his annoyance palpable, and he turned his head slightly away from her.

"What…? Uryuu? You aren't talking to me like normal because I spoke with _Uryuu_?" Orihime was offended, and could already feel an angry tear escape from her eye. She stared at her ruined gown and wiped her tears away hastily. "That doesn't make any sense at all!"

There was a long pause, "…I know," Ulquiorra started, his tone noticeably softer, "I know it doesn't make sense."

Orihime looked at her dark captor. He was studying at the ground, even from their distance, she could his bright eyes filled with shame, "I didn't want…" He paused and started over, "I don't like to talk to you while I am so unreasonably angry, will you accept that?"

Orihime blinked with surprise, and a few more tears overflowed from her eyes. Was he… Was he _apologizing_ to her?

"Are you okay?" she breathed, shock coating her voice.

Ulquiorra turned and locked his apathetic gaze with hers. Orihime blushed; it was nerve-racking to be the subject of his direct attention, "No," he said, "I'm not 'okay'. I've discovered complete nihility is impossible for me to achieve now, and it's difficult for me to come to terms with that."

Orihime's brow wrinkled, "I don't…"

With a tenderness in his eyes she had never seen before, Ulquiorra reached out his arm and softly bemoaned, "I long to touch you, Orihime."

Her gray eyes widened and she took a step back, she could feel her face burn with her blush. Her heart was elated and yet sank in her chest at the same time. "I…" She couldn't seem to find the proper words.

"It's such a powerful desire." Ulquiorra continued, his eyes boring into her with their intensity, "I can't escape it. I can't rest. It's always in the back of my mind. I used to find solace in nullity, but your visage gnaws at my every waking thought." His green eyes slightly narrowed with pain as his arm reached further for her, "And here I am again. I might as well be a thousand miles away from you. I'm broken; just scattered pieces of who I am."

"Ulquiorra," Orihime sighed, breathless, her heart beating a million miles an hour.

"I have irrationally come to the conclusion that your touch will make me whole." He finished, his deep voice hushed.

She was completely overcome with emotion—she wasn't even sure of everything she was feeling—and the tears started rolling freely down her face. She slowly started to walk towards his disappearing form. Each step was agonizing; each step closer to him made him dissolve faster. She had tired running to him, tired lunging at him, but the results were always the same. As soon as her hand reached his, there would be nothing left to hold.

"I want to continue to talk to you," she whispered as she approached him, "I don't care if you're angry, or depressed or nihility. Just… please continue to talk to me. Don't ignore me. Don't shut me out… _Please_."

They locked gazed once more; his expression was incredibly lonely, yet fractionally satisfied. Extending her arm to reach his, she grasped at his hand, but held nothing but ash.

* * *

Orihime awoke softly. She blinked a few times, dazed by her unfamiliar environment before remembering she was still in the clubroom. The sunset that dimly shone through the large windows was a deep orange, and the shadows were overpowering the fading light. It was so quiet, so still; only a few faint voices of happy classmates could be heard from the distant hallway.

She slowly sat up and stretched, rubbing feeling back into her prickling, sleeping arms, and checked the time on her cell phone; she had been asleep for only half an hour—it seemed so much longer than that. She looked down at her hands, and with a sad smile, she slowly watched herself interlock her fingers together. With a beating heart and a growing blush, She marveled at the sensation of feeling all ten digits slide smoothly through each other, and the pressure of her palms as they clasped together tightly. Touch. Holding hands. It was a deceptively simple request, Orihime ruminated; to be able to touch one another now would be to defy the ruling of God. But wasn't that what her powers allowed her to do? Reject reality? Perhaps the answers to her questions regarding Ulquiorra had been in front of her the entire time…

Orihime stretched once more, and this time she felt fabric start to slip from her shoulders. With a question in her eyes, she quickly grabbed the fabric and pulled it in front of her. A gray uniform jacket? She glanced around the clubroom. It was empty save for herself. She routinely assumed it was Uryuu's, he was always the chivalrous type, and decided she would return it the next time she saw him.

With a groan, she stood, automatically pushing in her chair. She started to gather her belongings and stuffing it into her school bag, except for her dolphin plush, she would gently carry him home in her hands, along with Uryuu's jacket. Absentmindedly, she pushed a strand of auburn hair out of her face as she turned the corner from the doorway into the hallway…

…And collided smack into the chest of a person walking the other way. They both stumbled backwards, and Orihime nearly dropped her dolphin.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" She profusely apologized as she regained her footing, "I totally didn't see you at al—_Uryuu_?" She accused with shock when she recognized her victim. The Quincy was awkwardly holding a can of iced coffee in each of his hands, was wearing his simple white button-down shirt and red tie, and was looking at her with subtle bewilderment.

"I thought you left?" Orihime asked lamely.

Uryuu wordlessly offered her one of the cans of coffee, and she accepted it with a small blush, "No," he explained as he popped his can open, "I went to the vending machines. You seemed really tired, and I thought you could use a caffeine boost."

Orihime smiled as she opened her can and took a sip; it was good, "Thank you! You've been awfully sweet to me lately."

"It's nothing, really," Uryuu started, "In fact, I should have been helping you out long before."

"Oh, you don't have to go out of your way to help me. I'm fine." Orihime said with a blush.

"I want to." He insisted, his blue eyes sincere.

"Oh….Okay." Orihime rotated her coffee can in her hands, examining the information, while Uryuu took a deep gulp of his drink.

Orihime suddenly remembered the jacket draped over her arm, she held it out to show Uryuu, "Is this yours?"

His face instantly became rosy, "Oh, yeah! I-I thought the room was kind of drafty, and I didn't want you catching a cold or anything."

"It was your duty as a man?" Orihime over-dramatically concluded.

"Exactly," Uryuu half-laughed, and shyly reached out and pulled his uniform jacket off her proffered arm. He seemed to be especially careful when his fingers brushed against her. Orihime wondered in the back of her mind if Ulquiorra would ever be shy when it came to touching her. She tried to imagine him with a slight blush on his pale face, timidly reaching out to her…

Yeah… No. Nope. Never. She had either a very poor imagination, or knew Ulquiorra better than she thought. Her Ulquiorra was… _pure_, if that was the right word for it. He may be rough and bold, but all of his intentions were natural.

_"I long to touch you…" _She remembered him saying, and she could feel her whole body melting with heat at the ramifications of Ulquiorra's desire. She was blushing furiously. She wanted to touch him, too, she realized.

Uryuu cleared his throat, and Orihime slightly jumped, and looked up at him. He had already put his jacket back on, and was looking at her with a strange expression on his face, "So… Are you working at the bakery tonight?"

Orihime was instantly suspicious, "No, Chad got both yesterday and today off for me."

"Do you… have any current plans?" He seemed to be quite interested in the floor, though he did steal some quick glances at her.

Thinking fast, Orihime smoothly played it cool, "Actually, I was thinking about going over and visiting Chad. I haven't hung out with him in a while." She could see Uryuu's shoulders drop in disappointment, and she sort of relented, "Why? Did you have something in mind? If it's not time sensitive, maybe the three of us could go together…?"

"Ah, it's nothing, really." He adjusted his glasses, "I thought we could maybe design costumes for the senior's dance, and…" He looked at her seriously, "Maybe talk about a few things that have been bothering you."

"Oh." Orihime wanted nothing more than to crawl under a rock and hide forever. "Well, I definitely want to help you with the costumes, but the other thing…" She sighed, "Sorry, Uryuu… but I still need a little more time, okay?"

He exhaled heavily, "Fine. But this is really serious. I don't want Soul Society getting involved."

"Why would Soul Society get involved?" Orihime puzzled.

Uryuu took a nonchalant sip of his iced coffee, "Because Urahara is involved, and anything that man wants to know, he'll find out."

She half groaned in frustration, mindlessly turned her dolphin plushie around in her hand.

"My thoughts exactly," Uryuu articulated. "So don't wait too long."

"Yeah…" Orihime sighed, "Yeah, I know."

They awkwardly faced each other, both torn by inner battles. "Anyway," Uryuu started, "Do you want a ride to Chad's? I could get my dad's Mercedes Benz over here pretty quick…"

Orihime instantly brightened, "Is _that_ what that car is? It did seem pretty fancy."

Uryuu gestured to his Quincy pin on his jacket's lapel, "Oh, c'mon; did you really think my dad would get anything less?"

They both laughed, and Orihime sighed, "I'll be okay, Uryuu." Her tone was shyly serious, "Chad lives nearby, so you don't need to bother yourself to drive me there."

Uryuu opened his mouth to speak, but Orihime quickly added, "I like walking; it'll give me time to think. So, yeah… I guess I'll see you tomorrow?"

"If you're sure…"

"I'm sure." She smiled, and started to walk pass her friend, "Thanks again, Uryuu!" She waved goodbye with her toy dolphin, and turned on her heel and started to briskly walk towards the exit. Uryuu was a good friend, but sometimes… Sometimes she could swear he was flirting with her, or something. And then the next minute he was trying to dig into her brain about… Oh, she didn't know, her 'dark reiatsu.' But then that would mean she would have to tell him about Ulquiorra. She scoffed. That wasn't happening.

She exited the school and into the very late afternoon day. The ground still smelled like the rain, and she breathed in the freshness with a smile before starting down the street that would lead her to Chad's apartment. She really hoped he'd be home, because she desperately wanted to talk to him. She sighed. The last two days had been so eventful, nothing more could possibly happen, right?

* * *

End Chapter 3!

Did you find the song lyric? I'll give you a clue; the name of the song is "Pieces." :)

Please review! They make me just as happy as you are getting an update from me. 8D

Oh, okay... I realize there's a lot of IshidaHime in this chapter (it is seriously fun to write, omg), but again, don't worry. I plan on using poor Ishida as a device to dramatize my precious Ulquihime. ;) (The poor guy, I feel bad for him; making him sorta fall for a girl knowing he'll never get her... Sigh. XDDD )

I'll plan to update sometime next week (even though it'll be like, pathetically short, haha). Thanks for reading!


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

The little Hollow lizard felt a great disturbance of reiatsu from up above the white sand, causing little rivulets of dust to pour into its dark den. The lizard dramatically tilted its head to one side, listening; its beady purple eye gazing towards the ceiling of its underground home. Another huge boom vibrated the Hollow lizard's den from above, causing sand to cave into half its home. With an annoyed chirp, the Hollow lizard crawled its scaly brown body towards the entrance tunnel, only to find that, too, had been caved in.

The lizard chirped a grumble and, using its large, white masked head, started to dig in the sand towards the surface.

It emerged from underground into the dark Hueco Mundo night just as a chunk of bloody gore landed right next to it. A shrilling scream echoed throughout the pale, sandy fields.

With wide, purple eyes, the Hollow lizard froze, staring at the bleeding and bruised flesh in front of it, which it recognized to be part of an Arrancar's arm. It looked up just in time to see a strange human, dressed in a white military uniform, conjure a blue spirit arrow and aim it right at the forehead of the injured Arrancar in front of it. The Arrancar was lying on the ground, severely wounded, blubbering pleas to spare his life as he held onto the gushing stump of his missing arm.

The human in the white military uniform smiled mercilessly, and released his spirit arrow.

Bright red blood splattered sickeningly across the white sand as the Arrancar's head exploded, his remaining body toppling limply onto the ground. The human laughed victoriously, the grating sound shattering the stillness of the quiet dunes.

The Hollow lizard's adrenaline finally kicked in. With a little frightened shrill, it madly started to dig in the sand for the safety of its den. It had barely gotten a few inches into the ground when it heard the condescending grating voice of the human in the white military uniform, "What's this?" The human purred as he started to lope towards the petrified lizard, "I didn't know Hollows came in _this_ size!"

The Hollow lizard knew it didn't have time to hide underground, so it turned its masked head south and sprinted as fast as it could possibly run. All four of its little legs looked like pinwheels as it darted around the smooth, soft landscape. Its breathing was labored, and its legs were becoming sore with his extended run. The lizard started to slow down.

A blue spirit arrow exploded in the sand right next it, causing grit to sharply splatter across the lizard's scaly body.

With a terrified shriek, the Hollow lizard jumped and picked up its speed with a renewed burst of flight. It could hear the human rancorously laugh behind it, and another blue arrow split the sand right next to its tail. The lizard darted and ducked as a barrage of spirit arrows narrowly missed it; the cursing human was merely feet behind it now.

The lizard looked up, and just atop of the sandy hill it was running on, it saw a huge cluster of white quartz trees, their leafless limbs entwining in closely together like a giant bush. It almost glowed with sparkling luminance in the pale moonlight. A chance to hide!

The Hollow lizard squinted its purple eyes with effort as it climbed the hill, pushing ever closer to the quartz bush, and curiously, the closer the lizard got the grove, the more it felt the prickling of a dense spiritual reiatsu, but the urgency of the attacking human behind it made it heedless to this new warning.

With its little chest puffing, the lizard finally made it to the pale limbs. Strangely, black ash swirled all around the quartz bush, seemingly being carried by the current of the oceanic reiatsu that emanated from deep inside the heart of the white trees. Even though the lizard wanted nothing more than to turn and run from the terror that resided inside the trees, it started to enter the bush anyway. But the limbs were so entwined, so thick, that the lizard ran right into a dead end within a foot; it pawed piteously at its barred escape.

Another blue arrow ricocheted off one of the quartz limbs, just barely missing the Hollow lizard again, causing several of the branches to explode in crystal fragments. The human, breathing heavily, gazed down at the lizard through the branches. "Finally gotcha," he smiled grotesquely, and drew a spirit arrow the lizard knew wouldn't miss. The lizard curled into a little ball, tucking its tail over eyes so it wouldn't have to witness its doom, shaking with fear.

The arrow never came.

"W-what…?" The lizard heard the human mutter with confusion. It chanced a glance up, and saw that the human's face was profusely bleeding from every orifice. His eyes, nose, ears, and mouth were gushing blood, dotting his pristine white uniform with crimson stains. The lizard could feel the horrific reiatsu from the bush surge forward; its crushing weight skimming over the lizard as the dense spiritual pressure rushed towards the human.

The lizard once again covered its eyes as it felt the current of reiatsu crush the human; his gurgled scream was cut off when his entire body was instantly squeezed to mush under the tremendous weight of the spiritual pressure. Black ash spiraled around the quartz limbs.

* * *

"Chad…! _No…!_ What do you think you're doing?" Orihime exaggeratedly bemoaned; she was sitting cross-legged on the worn floor of his small, humble studio apartment, with her dolphin plush in her lap. The wood stain on the molding around the windows and doors was fading, and the paint on the walls was starting to crack and yellow. The tiny kitchenette, which was tucked away in the far corner next to the sliding shoji doors of the equally tiny bathroom and closet, had been hastily cleaned, but the rest of the space was still in that organized-chaos that bachelors typically kept, albeit Chad's things were a bit tidier. His plain, white sleeping futon was sloppily made, and the old TV in the corner next to it had a bunch of _Carnivore Kingdom_ DVDs neatly stacked on top of it. A small kotatsu table took up most of the space in the middle of his apartment, and junk mail was piled in the center of it. Chad had only two pictures hung with push-pins on his walls; a signed, but gaudy, poster of Don Kanonji's _Ghost Bust_ show, and a fading photograph of a young Mexican couple smiling; Orihime had never asked, but she always had assumed it was a picture of his parents

Chad was standing in front of his opened closet, which looked comically small compared to his tall figure, and was shifting through his garments, looking for something in particular; a small suitcase half-full of somewhat folded clothes sat open by his socked feet. "What do you mean?" He asked her as if she was being entirely unreasonable, "I'm going to a wedding."

"In Mexico?!" Orihime dramatically wailed, "That's so far away… Why haven't you spoken about this before?"

The big man shrugged as he pulled out a white-collared shirt and half-folded it in the air before plopping into his suitcase, "It never came up in conversation."

"That's the dumbest excuse I've ever heard." Orihime deadpanned. A silence fell over them, and Orihime grimaced in its wake, continually getting more and more frustrated as time went on. She watched Chad select another shirt and put it in his suitcase before blurting with agitation, "Well, what are the details? You're going to a wedding in Mexico. Whose wedding? How long will you be gone?"

Chad turned to face her, his expression unreadable, "I guess you could say she's like my cousin."

"'_Like_' your cousin?" Orihime echoed in a question.

He turned his attention back to his closet, "Yeah. After my parents passed away, a man named Oscar Joaquin de la Rosa adopted me. He was like a grandfather to me. It is his youngest sister's daughter's wedding I'm attending."

Orihime had to trace the connections in the air with her finger to make sure she understood the relations correctly. "Okay," she started, "Do you know them well?"

"Not well, but I've met them. My grandfather kept in good touch with his relations when he was alive, but Alexia has emailed me countless times how I seemed to be the closest to the old man." A small smile spread across his tanned face, "Which is why she wants me to walk her down the aisle, in his place."

"Alexia is your cousin?" Orihime inferred, "Don't they usually have the bride's father walk them down the aisle?"

"Mm," was his only reply. Oirhime rolled her eyes. It was probably a long story, or a tragic one; something he didn't want to go into detail right now.

Orihime mindlessly played with the dolphin plush in her lap, "…And how long will you be gone?"

"A few weeks." Chad remarked with no verbal inclination; he could've said "for five minutes" with the same tone.

Orihime blanched, "_Weeks_?!" She said, aghast, "That's _much_ longer than I thought!"

Chad didn't seem fazed by her outburst, "I'm also going to attend their family reunion, and see some historical ruins while I'm there. Then I'm going to the United States."

"The United States? Which is in America?"

"Mm."

Orihime ran her hand through her hair, "Well, I guess I could see the logic in getting all of your trips done in one go, but… What about school?"

"I've been working with our teachers. We've worked out an email system." Chad replied as he bent down and zipped his suitcase closed. He then started to walk around his apartment and gather his wallet and keys. "Anyway, I need to leave soon, so…"

With widening eyes, Orihime stood in protest, "Wait, you mean you're leaving today? Like, _right now_?"

"Mn."

"Chad!" Orihime whined, her voice straining to keep its faux outrage over actual suppressed hurt, "Were you going to tell me that you were leaving at all? Or were you just going to wait until I figured it out on my own?"

"You seemed to have a lot on your plate. I didn't want to inconvenience you." Chad said, half apologetically, half defensibly, as he reached for his luggage and switched off the single overhead light.

"Telling you goodbye is _not_ an 'inconvenience' to me, Chad." Orihime promised as she unconsciously hugged her dolphin plush and started to follow the big Mexican out of his apartment. "You've become a really close friend. It would cause me more pain to know you left without saying goodbye to me."

"Sorry. Didn't think of it like that."

Orihime rolled her eyes as they walked out into the covered entryway of Chad's apartment building. The last of the fading sunlight hung onto the very edge of the horizon, washing the twilight sky in deep bronze and blues. The evening air was starting to lose its daytime warmth, and Orihime wrapped her arms around herself as she watched Chad lock his door.

"Male logic," she chastised him, and then sighed deeply. "Well… Be safe, Chad. Don't drink the water and stuff. Take lots of pictures, and email me often."

"Mn." Chad's usually stony face softened fractionally, "Orihime," he started, serious, "I'm sorry I'm leaving when there's so much left unfinished, but…" He looked away, towards the lingering sunset, "Follow your heart, okay? And you'll be fine."

Orihime glanced at her shoes and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, "Yeah, thanks. You too."

"Well," Chad said in a sigh, holding his suitcase in one hand, "Must be off. I gotta catch the bus to Ichigo's place, then Kurosaki's dad will drive me to the airport."

"What? Kurosaki knew you were leaving, too?" Orihime couldn't believe that neither of them had told her anything.

"Male logic," Chad shrugged with a smile.

"Ugh!" She smiled back, then leaned in and gave her friend a tight, quick hug, "I'll miss you," she sighed.

"Mn." Chad agreed and turned and started to lumber off down the steps. Orihime watched him go, still a bit bewildered that he was suddenly gone. The gift of wasabi paste seemed to make more sense now, as it was more of a farewell gift than a get-well-soon one. She would definitely miss him; he was the only friend she had that would allow her to rant without trying to rescue her from her problems. In retrospect, Chad really was the only one of her friends that wasn't always trying to protect her from everything, perhaps that was why she enjoyed talking to him so much.

She exhaled deeply and glanced around the covered walkway as the streetlamps were starting to flicker on, one by one; this was the exact spot where she protected Shishigawara from Tsukishima a few weeks ago, she randomly remembered. She thought it was funny, that, despite what the Book of the End did to all her other memories, not a single moment with Ulquiorra had been tampered with.

With no real purpose, she started to walk down the steps of Chad's old building and towards the ribbon of sidewalk, which glowed under puddles of streetlights. Although it didn't really surprise her, she found it interesting to see just how fiercely protective she had become of her time with her pale captor. Even against attack, her memories of Ulquirora remained strong and proud. It was those same memories that had grounded her, and allowed her to quickly sort through the Book of the End's deceit, when it had finally failed.

Her brow puckered in slow recognition as she tucked a loose strand of auburn hair behind her ear; Ulquiorra had saved her, in a way, back then, too…

The sky had become a very dark navy blue now, with only the twinkling of city lights dotting the illuminated skyline. Orihime deviated from the walkway and onto the slightly damp grass of the entrance of a sprawling city park, the same large park where she first met Ulquiorra almost two years ago. She casually strolled up a slight hill, wrapping her slender arms around her body to stave off the cold night air, hugging her dolphin plush close. She now knew where she was going; she had been here many times before. As she rounded the top of the hill, she spied the giant crater from their first fight with the Arrancar; a deep shadowed divot in the otherwise softly dark landscape. It had been smoothed out by the park's landscapers, but only been partially filled in, and was now covered happily with grass. In the winter, the neighborhood children came to the "bowl" for awesome (but for their parents, terrifying) sledding action.

A small, lonely smile spread across Oirhime's face; life had moved on from the horrors of Aizen and his Espada, and yet there was still evidence that they existed. She slowly stepped into the steep side of the crater, walking slightly sideways as she descended deeper into the depression; right here—right in this hole—this was concrete proof that Ulquiorra had existed. She planted her foot at the bottom of the bowl, blanketed in deep shadows—right here. He had been standing right _here_. She patted the soft grass with the toe of her shoe for unneeded emphasis.

He wasn't just a dream.

She sighed, and allowed her imagination to take flight; flashes of Ulquiorra's visage flashed through her mind's eye, seemingly building an image of the Arrancar in front of her: the pale color of his complexion; his strong hands with his dark fingernails; her imaginative eyes traced from the smooth lines of his profiled chin down, following the contours of his neck, to his milky collarbones; daring to stare into the darkness of his exposed Hollow hole. She blushed, and adverted her mind's gaze upward, watching as his careless midnight hair, a shocking contrast to his ashen skin, danced around his face in an imaginary wind. She sucked in a breath, and followed the lines of his cheekbone to his dark upper lip, which always seemed to be stuck in a perpetual frown. She briefly wondered if she touched them, if would they feel as cold and as hard as Ulquiorra always expressed with them. With a shudder, Orihime finally followed his characteristic teal tear marks up, and met Ulquiorra directly in the eye. Ulquiorra was devoid of color except for the intense green pigment in his eyes, which were always so severe. He looked at her sharply, almost mechanically, and his full attention was on her like a sudden weight choking her chest. It was hard to breathe; she exhaled shakily as their shared stare bored deep into her soul. His powerful eyes narrowed slightly with loneliness, and Orihime felt a pang rush through her body in response.

"_Woman_," Ulquiorra's deep voice was laced with longing.

He sounded so close—so _real_—that Orihime literally was shaken out of her reverie. She blinked; she had to wait for her eyes to adjust to the dimness of the shadowed park's crater as she reminded herself that she was only _imagining_ Ulquiorra and that he wasn't actually there.

_Still…_ Her gray eyes narrowed. Her hands were shaking and her breathing hitched. She could've sworn that her ears had heard him, not her recall. She licked her lips with tingling anticipation, "Ul-Ulquiorra…?" Her shuddering voice whispered into the stillness of the night's chilled air.

There was no response save for the rustling of canopy leaves in the nearby trees as a small breeze blew through the area. A dog barked far off, and a roar of a motorcycle engine revved distantly.

She exhaled a breath she didn't realize she had been holding. With an annoyed shake of her head, she mentally chastised herself for getting her hopes up. Although she was crazily convinced that she and Ulquiorra were sharing some kind of connection—whether or not this connection was just hallucinations from leftover reiatsu or something much more was left to be said, _but_—it was silly of her to think that, while fully in her mental capacities, she could incite it. After all, she reasoned with herself as she started to climb out of the grassy crater, she only had these communications with Ulquiorra in her subconscious, not her waking daydreams. Disappointment rocked through her body stronger than she would have liked to admit as she started walking out of the dim park and back to the lighted sidewalk, towards home. A crushing emptiness was slowly starting to overtake her, growing with each step she took away from the park. Excess moisture made her vision blurry. She sniffed.

"This is stupid," She grumbled to herself, hastily wiping her eyes with her free hand. "I'm _not_ upset about this,"

But the tear that escaped her eye said otherwise.

Her expression crumbled as her pace quickened and she squeezed her dolphin plush tighter; she simply wanted to be home, and wrapped in a comfortable blanket. She glanced down at her free hand as she flexed her fingers straight then squeezed them into a tight fist.

_"I long to touch you."_

Touch… Orihime's lip quivered. _God_, why had she hesitated when Ulquiorra had reached for her the first time? Why did she wait? She wrapped her arms around her aching chest. Would they have been able to touch two seconds earlier than when she had reached to reciprocate his touch? Or was he ash the moment his wings started to disappear? Why? Why? _Why?_ Every day the regret grew stronger in her heart. She wanted so badly to touch him; it was almost a literal pain. Time had not even remotely started to heal these hurts; it was only making them fester with each passing hour.

She blindly strode past the brightly lit store fronts as she paced down the sidewalk, like her brain was on autopilot; head down, she was oblivious to the other pedestrians and the zooming traffic. She had often wondered if, had Ulquiorra not turned to ash, and they had entwined their hands together, what would have happened next. Would he have pulled her in and held her close? Would they have stood there, with interlocked digits, reveling in the mutual sensation of compassionate contact? Would it have saved him? That was the question that haunted her the most; did she let him die, by hesitating that instant he was waiting for her to reach out to him? Did she? Was that the real reason she was forced to relive her decision every time she dreamed?

"_Heeey!_ Where ya goin' in such a hurry, babe?"

Before Orihime could react to the cajoling catcall, she felt a greasy hand slip into the crook of her elbow, forcing her to suddenly spin around. She stumbled over her own feet in the process, landing face-first into the soft chest of the person who had grabbed her. The stench of alcohol was strongly on him, and his tee-shirt was stained with God knows what. Orihime immediately felt disgusted and furious. Her expression a perfect mirror of her emotions as she looked up to the face the man, who, unsurprisingly, was ugly; it looked like he hadn't shaved in a few days, nor brushed his teeth for that matter, and his dark hair was slick with grease and was sticking up in odd directions, as if he had just woken up. His beady eyes were cloudy, and looked at her with lust.

She tried to pull away, but his drunken grip was relentless; her gray eyes narrowed with revulsion at his grasp. Strangely, she felt something intense churn deep inside her.

"You're pretty cute," he slurred, with projectile spittle, "I'm gonna go to this awesome party, you should totally come with me."

"No thank you, sir." Orihime grated through clenched teeth, attempting once more to jerk herself away from the drunkard; she felt like there was an ocean billowing into her spiritual pressure.

"Ah, but _sweetie_," The drunk sighed, leaning in close to her, his breath was horrid, "You're so cute in your little uniform. C'mon… I'll show ya a grand time, ya know?"

"Let go of me," Orihime warned darkly, her gray eyes serious, feeling empowered by her surging reiatsu.

The man merely smiled and wrapped his other arm around her shoulders—which caused the auburn girl to glare daggers at him—and forcibly started to guide her away from the direction of her home, "I love it when you cuties play hard ta get. It's so hot!" He rancorously laughed, "You'll love it! We'll have da greatest time together; you'll see!"

"No! Stop!" She yelled, her expression livid, and the oceanic reiatsu rushed with her anger. Before she realized what was happening, the rolling waves of dense spiritual energy fractured the sidewalk under her feet with a loud crack; the splintering concrete fissuring in a spider web pattern around them. The streetlights flickered under the weight, and the man yelped with sudden pain, releasing Orihime immediately. With horror, Orihime watched as the drunk doubled over, blood was spurting from his nose and he was making a terrible gurgling noise and he started coughing uncontrollably.

"What happened?" A woman cried distantly.

"Did she hit him?" A man's voice asked.

"Somebody, call the police!"

The surging reiastu was suddenly gone, leaving her feeling lost and helpless. She took a shaky step backwards; her whole body was shuddering, her mouth agape with shock, and her eyes were wide and terrified.

The man caught his breath, and glared at Orihime, murderously angry, "You _bitch_!" He snarled, and attempted to rise to his feet, but instead fell into another coughing fit onto the cracked sidewalk.

Orihime didn't wait to see what would happen next; she turned on her heel and took off running, sprinting by annoyed people as she pushed passed them, tears stinging the corners of her eyes. The world was smeared lights and muted sounds as she ran. She skidded around the corner and was finally on her home street. She was breathing heavily; her hand clutched her racing heart as she dashed once more down the dark road. She arrived at her apartment building and took the steps two at a time to get to her door. She reached into her pocket and got her key, but her hand was annoyingly trembling, and it took several tries before she was able to sink the key into the deadbolt and open the door. Quickly, she slammed her door tight and slid the lock back into place.

Orihime stood in her dark entryway, panting, somehow managing to still be holding onto her dolphin plush, which was contorted in her hand's iron grip. She loosened her hold and smoothed out the stuffed animal, and hugged it tightly.

"I'm okay, I'm okay, I'm okay…" she chanted in a breathy whisper. Before she could really collect her thoughts, her cell jingled a happy tune in her pocket, making her jump clean out of her socks with a yelp. Realizing what it was, she exhaled a nervous laugh, rolling her eyes at her own jumpiness. Retrieving her cell, the screen informed her she had a new text from Rukia: "Strong Arrancar might be close to you. u ok?"

She sighed, and had to use just one finger to text, as her coordination was still shivering, "Yes," She texted back, "Just got out of the shower. Are you checking it out?" She stared at the message for a while, considering, before hitting the "Send" button.

Her phone chimed cheerfully a moment later, and Orihime opened the message immediately, "ok" was Rukia's simple response. Orihime closed her eyes tight and leaned her head against the back of her front door, her auburn hair bunching around her shoulders. She didn't want to lie to the Shinigami, but at the same time…

She could see Ulquiorra's countenance behind her eyes; his intense green gaze seemed to be daring her to counter him.

She slowly opened her gray eyes as she puckered her brow. Kicking off her shoes, she walked into her dark, still apartment and haphazardly placed her keys, cell, and dolphin on the kitchen table as she walked passed it. She pushed open her bedroom door with her foot; her room was quiet in the dark, and it was dimly illuminated by a strip of light sneaking its way in under her blinds. With a grim determination, she tore off her uniform, leaving only her camisole and underpants on as she softly got into bed and crawled under her fluffy white comforter, curling into a comfortable position, she closed her eyes, "Oh, Ulquiorra," She breathed, clenching her eyes tight, "I'm _so_ scared… I don't know what's happened to me anymore… Please…" She gulped back a fresh wave of emotion, "Please help me…"

* * *

"There's nothing here," Rukia complained as she kicked a chuck of cracked concrete with the edge of her sandal. "We're just wasting our time, _again._" The street was dark and quiet in the late hour. The store fronts were locked up and only a few cars travelled down the road. City workers had hastily taped off a section of sidewalk that looked like a great weight had crushed it; this was obviously where the Arrancar had unleashed its reiatsu. Rukia and Ichigo, both in their Shinigami forms, had been up and down this street several times, looking for answers.

"This is so frustrating," Ichigo admitted, his characteristic scowl deepening, "I mean… I could have sworn that this reiatsu was…" He ran a hand through his spiky orange hair in irritation, and he turned to Rukia, "Are there such things as ghosts of ghosts?"

Narrowing her indigo eyes, the petite Shinigami warily asked, "Why would you ask that?"

Ichigo shook his head, "Hollows are essentially ghosts, right? And yet…" Ichgio looked up into the night sky, "I think I'm being haunted by the ghost of a Hollow I killed a long time ago."

Rukia watched the brooding teen for a while, her head slightly tilted as she was considering her response, "You're being strangely metaphysical; it's not like you to think so deeply."

"Oi!" Ichigo feigned offence, "What are you trying to say?!"

"I'm saying," Rukia replied calmly, and started to walk down the street, "That you're over thinking the situation." She turned around and motioned with the bob of her head that Ichigo should follow her, "Examine your information carefully, and tell me why you think a 'ghost of a ghost' is haunting you."

With a grunt, Ichigo started strolling after his friend, "Well," he pointed back in the direction of the cracked sidewalk, "_That_ felt an awful lot like Ulquiorra's reiatsu. When he got to his second release, it felt like an ocean. I've only ever felt a reiatsu like that from him."

Rukia's expression was entirely unconvinced, "That's weak, circumstantial evidence. Next!"

Ichigo was flabbergasted, "Wait? 'Next?' No! Didn't you just hear what I was saying? I think Ulquiorra is back!"

Placing her hands on her hips, Rukia quipped, "By what proof? You felt a similar reiatsu? There's a lot of Hollows out there that can feel the same."

"Yeah, but how many Arrancar have a preoccupation with Inoue?" Ichigo's knowing smirk proved he thought his argument had won.

"Yeah, but how many Arrancar did Orihime encounter while she was captured in Los Noches?" Rukia seriously asked, "Before we go chasing ghosts of ghosts, I think we should consider that another Arrancar is trying to get to Orihime."

Ichigo's mouth was slightly ajar as he mulled over this possibility, "That's… That makes more sense, but that doesn't explain why its reiatsu would appear and disappear so suddenly."

"Well, if it's the same Arrancar that summoned that Gillian Menos into this world using a gate we couldn't sense, then it goes to show that it can pass by undetected by us." Rukia reasoned, "It probably knows it can't beat us head on, and so when the Arrancar senses our presence, it hides."

Ichigo roughly scratched the back of his head in frustration, "Well, if it will always hide when it senses us, then how are we supposed to get close enough to kill it? I don't like the idea of Inoue having a supernatural stalker."

A mischievous grin spread across Rukia's face, which was only enhanced in the moonlight, "We become invisible. C'mon, there's something I've wanted to try."

A few moments later, the Shinigami were back in Ichgio's room, the owner of which was casually lounging on his bed, scrolling through a magazine with an expressionless face, while Rukia was hurriedly digging though a box in his closet.

"Have you found it yet?" Ichigo asked again, boredom coloring his tone.

"I know it's in here, just wait a second…" Rukia chided him impatiently, shuffling the contents of the box around, "Ah! Here it is!" She cried victoriously, holding up what looked like a golf-ball sized pearl. It sparkled luminously in the lamplight.

"What is that?" Interest was finally reappearing in Ichigo's voice as he sat up straight.

"This," Rukia beamed, "Is a shiryoku stone." She turned the large pearl around in her hand so that the light reflected the pastel pinks, blues and creams that coursed over the sphere.

"Sounds ominous. How'd you get a hold of one?" Ichigo asked her.

Rolling her eyes, the black-haired Shinigami explained, "I got it a while ago while in recon training; it was hard to use, so we didn't actually use it in combat, but I held onto it, thinking it might come in handy one day." She smiled and held the shiryoku stone out towards him, and Ichigo automatically cupped his hands to catch it. The large pearl was smooth and cold on his palms.

He inspected it quickly; it seemed innocuous enough. "What's it supposed to do?"

"It'll refract your spiritual pressure as you concentrate it into the stone, causing your reiastu's influence to minimize to basically zero." Rukia explained as she started pulling out her markers and sketchbook.

"You don't need to draw your horrible pictures; I get it," Ichigo interrupted her, "It makes it so people can't sense my reiatsu."

Rukia looked at him with no joy as she sadly put her sketchbook away, "Idiot! Not just that! People won't be able to sense _anything _from you. The only way they'd be able to notice you is through regular sensory perceptions."

"Yeah. Like hearing sight, smell… It turns you into a regular human." Ichigo secretly marveled at the stone as he rolled it around in his hands. "How do I make it work?"

Rukia sighed and sat down in the chair next to Ichigo's desk, "That's where it gets tricky. It requires a good deal of concentration, but since you always learn these difficult tasks super quick, I can't see a big problem."

Ichigo blinked, surprise giving way to billowing pride; he smiled shyly, a light blush dusting his cheeks, "Yeah, thanks."

Rukia immediately flustered, "W-what are you thinking? Don't let it get to your head!" She got up and paced across Ichigo's room, blushing furiously, "Anyway, let's just get your training started, we're going to want you invisible the next time that Arrancar rears its ugly head."

Ichigo smiled a subdued, secret-filled smile, while tenderly watching Rukia increasingly becoming more and more embarrassed under his gaze, "Yeah… Sounds good."

* * *

The crescent moon shined brightly in the dark, Hueco Mundo sky, washing everything in a pale, white light. A few whips of clouds floated around the moon; it seemed calm up there. Lonely, but calm. Orihime's gray eyes reflected the firmament she was gazing into, and thought the sky was such a fitting parallel to this moment. She was back in her ripped and stained Arrancar dress, standing across from the broken body of Ulquiorra. His leg and arm were just black splinters of what they once were. He was fading between his release form and his normal one; his lower body was still covered in dark fur, while his upper body was just his smooth, milky skin. Without his mask covering half of his face, he looked so much more human than ever before. And like the moon high in the sky, his intense green eyes stared at her calmly, but with such a loneliness it was breaking her heart.

"Woman," Ulquiorra's deep voice reverberated throughout her body, "Are you afraid of me?"

Orihime slowly shook her head, her bottom lip quivering with emotion, "No, I'm not afraid."

"I see," he nearly whispered, glancing at her from across the broken dome.

Orihime could already feel the blush start to heat up her face; she didn't know what to say to him anymore, all of her thoughts were muddled under the intense excitement of simply being in his presence. "You're here…" She whispered to him, "You're really _here_, aren't you?"

Ulquiorra said nothing, but his eyes his eyes flickered with an emotion she had never seen on him before. It was a mix between longing and expectation. It was hopeful.

Clasping her hands together, nervousness encompassed Orihime's entire being, she could feel herself shaking, "I need to know something." She started, her gray gaze glued to the sliver roof beneath her feet, "A-are you…" She sighed and started over, "Are you alive?"

Silence dominated the dome; she squeezed her eyes shut. She didn't want to ask stupid questions; she didn't want Ulquiorra to think she was dumb or uncool.

Sneaking a peek up, she could see Ulquiorra's apathetic face look at her strongly, with his great eyes narrowing in consideration. "I haven't been 'alive' for a long time," he started, and Orihime could feel her heartache immediately press down on her, "However," he continued, making sure he kept eye contact with her, "I have been a Hollow for much longer than I have ever been alive."

Orihime blinked. While his face remained impassive, the Espada's eyes were alight with good humor. Was he being playful with her?

"But…" She stumbled along, determination for a straight answer outweighing her nervousness, "Are you _still_ an Arrancar, then?"

His eyes were suddenly serious, stealing the warmth from around her, "Yes, in a way."

"I don't understand," She softly whimpered, her brow furrowing.

She heard Ulquiorra sigh distantly, as if struggling between two difficult choices, "I told the Shinigami that it would never be over unless he finished me." Ulquiorra finally relented, "He didn't, so it's still not over."

Shock swept through Orihime; it felt like the ground had been knocked from under her feet. Her knees were weak and shaky, her eyes wide, and her jaw was hinged open, "Wait…" She started, tears blurring her vision, "You mean to say that you've been around all this time…?" She took an unsteady step forward, exhilaration coating her every emotion, "Can I…" She gulped, her face burning crimson, a shy smile upon her face, "Can I see you?"

He turned his green eyes away from hers, "No."

She felt all color drain from her face, and the crushing weight of rejection took hold of her. She could feel hot tears freely flow down her cheeks, "_Oh…_" She choked out, her voice hitching on a sob. "O-okay…."

"Orihime," Ulquiorra's smooth voice tenderly interrupted her before she truly fell into despair. Hearing her name on his lips made her heart skip a beat, she saw that his severe eyes softened as they gazed at her, "Don't misunderstand; I want you more than anything, but," Heat flooded Orihime's core as her Espada continued softly, "I no longer have a body that you can see. I turned to ash."

The warmth was suddenly stolen from her again as her emotions dropped and rose in a whirlwind roller coaster, "Why?" She whispered, her gray eyes watery, "_Why_ did you turn to ash?"

Ulquiorra glanced upward at the crescent moon, "It's an extreme self-preservation technique." he started, "Though I didn't activate it, nor did I even want it to turn on. At least…" His powerful green eyes captured her gray ones, "Not until the very end, but by then, it was too late."

Her emotional roller coaster crested a hill; she felt utter jubilation at everything that he was saying. He wanted her! "But…" She started, "What do you mean by that? That it was 'too late?' Shouldn't it all be the same, in the end?"

"No," His deep voice sighed, "There's a great difference between a reflex and a reaction. My turning to ash was my body's reflexive response to dying. It's left me—maybe permanently—in this state. I would've purposefully used that self-perseveration technique to allow my body time to start over, cell by cell, while my reiatsu remained basically the same. It's difficult, but not impossible."

Orihime paled, "It's… It's permanent?" She quietly squeaked, "So you'll never be whole again?"

He said nothing, but his bright eyes narrowed, betraying his concern.

She hastily wiped the tears from her eyes, "Does this… Does this have anything to do with…" She could feel her face burning, "With our… _connection_?"

Ulquiorra blinked, allowing her to see clearly the surprise registering only in his eyes, "I don't know," he slowly admitted. "That is something I have yet to figure out, yet I don't want it to end."

Orihime's pulse started racing, she let out a shuddering breath, "I don't want it to end, either but… I think I can sometimes feel your reiastu surging in me," She confessed with rosy cheeks, "It sometimes scares me; it's so powerful, and I don't feel like I can control it at all." She looked up at him, pleading, "What's happening to me? …To us?"

Hurt could plainly be seen reflected in Ulquiorra's eyes, "I never wanted to scare you," he told her seriously, "It's not something I can explain with what I can see…" Orihime could see the distress in his eyes as he tried to reconcile the differences in his logic and his experiences.

He sighed, then turned and looked at her with a dark intensity. She could feel Ulquiorra's dense reiatsu swirl around her and press on her from all sides. It wasn't uncomfortable; it was almost tender, as if she was being cradled in his spiritual pressure. She sighed and leaned into his reiatsu. It was the closest they had ever been to actually touching. Solace and euphoria filled her soul. "I think I might've inhaled you." Ulquiorra seductively whispered his spiritual pressure pressing in even closer around her, "I can feel you behind my eyes. You've gotten into my bloodstream; I can feel you flowing in me."

"Ulquiorra," Orihime breathed, flushing.

"You are like the rain," He stated, his eyes strangely full of emotion, "You can connect the heavens with the earth, and I think that's what you're doing with you and me; though I'll try to control what I can; it's just so difficult feeling you so close, but being unable to do anything with you."

Ulquiorra suddenly glanced back up at the sky, as if he unexpectedly heard something. He sighed deeply, and then outstretched his pale arm towards her, "It's time to wake up, Sky Princess."

Orihime's eyes widened while the shy smile wouldn't leave her face, "I don't want to leave you," She complained, but started towards him, anyway, her steps shaky and her face blushing.

"Orihime," Ulquiorra started to rapidly turn to ash as she drew nearer, "Don't trust the Quincy. I believe their intent is to cause ruin to the world."

She narrowed her eyes in confusion, but she reached towards him out of reflex; but grasped nothing but ash.

* * *

AN: And End Chapter 4! Thanks for your patience! I have SOOO much more sympathy for other fanfiction writers that go MIA for a bit. I mean, I got a second job, a puppy, my older sister's getting married, AND Supernatural seasons 5 and 6. There was just no time for fanfiction, amirite? XD

Anyway, the WINNERS of Chapter 3's Easter Egg Contest were:

JanusTheUnlucky7

Morgiee

Congratulations! I need to contract one of you with a prize I'll eventually do... Eventually. XDD

And if you'd like to win something too, there're more Easter Eggs in this chapter! There's a really hard one, which is a quote from one of my favorite British TV shows, and a kind of easy one: A song lyric. If you can tell me what the quote/lyrics are and who/which band said them, you will win! GOOD LUCK

I will attempt to have another update sometime in January.

Thanks for reading and reviewing! Remember to find those Easter Eggs!


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